眠ねむる

ね

む

る

Common wordJLPTN4Freq.FrequencyTop 2,000

眠る · godan verb (-ru)

Meanings

godan verb (-ru), intransitive verb

General intransitive verb for sleeping or falling asleep. Compare 寝る, which focuses more on lying down or going to bed.

〈数すう〉時じ間かん眠ねむるto sleep for a certain number of hours
昨さく夜やは八はち時じ間かん眠ねむった。
I slept for eight hours last night.
〈物もの〉が眠ねむっているfor something (resources, talent, etc.) to lie unused or dormant
倉そう庫こには古ふるい機き械かいが眠ねむっている。
Old machines lie unused in the warehouse.
ぐっすり眠ねむるto sleep soundly/deeply
子こ供どもはぐっすり眠ねむっている。
The child is sleeping soundly.
〈場ば所しょ〉で眠ねむるto sleep at/in a place
公こう園えんのベンチで眠ねむる人ひとを見みた。
I saw a person sleeping on a bench in the park.

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寝ねるN5sense 1
寝る focuses on lying down or going to bed, while 眠る emphasizes actually being or falling asleep.
就しゅう寝しん sense 1
就寝する is a formal, written-register word for going to bed, whereas 眠る is the everyday word for being asleep.
眠ねむり込こむN2
眠る is the plain, general verb for 'to sleep', while 眠り込む specifically stresses falling into a deep, often sudden or unintended sleep.
寝ね付つくN1
眠る focuses on the ongoing state of being asleep, whereas 寝付く highlights the moment of transitioning into sleep.

起おきるN5sense 1
起きる means to wake up or get up, the direct opposite of falling asleep expressed by 眠る.
目め覚ざめるN1sense 1
目覚める describes waking up from sleep, contrasting with 眠る which describes falling or being asleep.
覚さめるN3
眠る means 'to sleep', the direct opposite of 覚める 'to wake up' from sleep.
目めが覚さめる
眠る means to fall asleep or be asleep, the opposite state from 目が覚める, which means to wake up.

眠ねむれる
眠る is the plain dictionary form meaning 'to sleep', while 眠れる is either its potential form meaning 'can sleep' or a separate literary word meaning 'sleeping/dormant'.
眠ねむたいN1
眠たい describes the feeling of wanting to sleep, whereas 眠る is the verb meaning 'to actually sleep'.
眠ねむいN5
眠い is the adjective describing the feeling of wanting to sleep, whereas 眠る is the verb meaning 'to sleep,' so learners must not confuse the two grammatically.

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眠るUsage94%
- ねむる
  Standard kanji spelling for 'to sleep' and extended figurative uses.
- ねぶる
  out-dated reading
ねむるUsage5%
Kana spelling is common in casual writing and when the kanji is not needed.
睡るUsage1%
- ねむる
  Rare kanji variant; 眠る is overwhelmingly preferred in modern Japanese.
- ねぶる
  out-dated reading
ねぶるUsage<1%
out-dated reading

The historical derivation is uncertain; the kanji 眠 is conventionally associated with sleep.