godan verb (-ru), intransitive verb
Obsolete intransitive godan verb. Replaced by 寝る (ねる) in modern Japanese. Found only in historical texts.
古語では「せぶる」は「寝る」の意味で使われた。
In old language, せぶる was used to mean 'to sleep'.
Modern standard verb for 'to sleep' or 'to lie down'. せぶる is its obsolete predecessor.
Obsolete verb; the exact derivation is uncertain. It may be related to classical Japanese 寝 (ぬ) or 臥 (ふ)す, but the historical development is not well documented.