slumbering 1 of 3

adjective

as in sleeping
being in a state of suspended consciousness made a comparison between the inattentive nation and a slumbering giant

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slumbering

2 of 3

noun

as in slumber
a natural periodic loss of consciousness during which the body restores itself my peaceful slumbering was interrupted by a ring of the doorbell

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slumbering

3 of 3

verb

present participle of slumber
1
as in resting
to be in a state of sleep she slumbered for hours while the train rolled on

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2
as in napping
to sleep lightly or briefly slumbering restlessly in the tropical heat

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of slumbering
Adjective
Flat, slow, even sleepier than the slumbering crowd that had come to see him. — Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026 The fireworks came instead from the Dodgers' slumbering offense, which awoke with Max Muncy's three-run double and Freddie Freeman's RBI single after Skubal departed. — ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026 The first murder is a girl slicing into her slumbering mother’s neck with a hacksaw; then her brother pounds his father’s face in with a baseball bat. — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 4 Aug. 2026 The shorthanded goal seemed to wake the slumbering Ducks, with Gauthier scoring on a power play 37 seconds later to halve the lead and become the first Duck with 40 goals in a season since Corey Perry in 2013-14. — Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2026 Transform a slumbering downtown into a bustling business sector. — Connor Letourneau, San Francisco Chronicle, 28 Mar. 2026 The supermassive black hole sitting at the heart of our galaxy is considered to be a slumbering giant. — Robert Lea, Space.com, 8 Jan. 2026 Trump revived a slumbering American electorate and drove record turnout, winning and losing; Mamdani won more votes than any modern mayor. — Ben Smith, semafor.com, 10 Nov. 2025 Along the way, the protagonist must also find a way to lift the curse on his eternally slumbering friend, who happens to be the prince. — PC Magazine, 16 Oct. 2025
Verb
In particular, the image of the sickly, slumbering child recurs throughout Marcon’s work. — Matthew McLean, Artforum, 22 Sep. 2026 The winter months pass, long nights, a bomb cyclone that buries my basement windows in snow and leaves me to lurk in the dark like a slumbering bear, and then spring arrives abrupt and clanging and golden. — Brian Laidlaw, Longreads, 1 Sep. 2026 In other words, the long-slumbering giant in the US space industry may finally be waking up. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 6 Aug. 2026 Their football was slumbering, stuttering. — Amy Lawrence, New York Times, 31 May 2026 And amazingly, photographs of them have been slumbering in archives or circulating unidentified for almost a century. — Glenn Kurtz, Time, 28 Mar. 2026 Others showed baby Spero clasping his tiny hand around Graham's finger and slumbering with a smile on his face. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Mar. 2026 One of the men set fire to the slumbering victim’s clothes, causing a small blaze, police said. — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 3 Mar. 2026 The world's largest acidic geyser has begun erupting again in Yellowstone after slumbering for over five years, the national park said Monday. — Kerry Breen, CBS News, 3 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slumbering
  1. sleeping
  2. slumber
  3. resting
  4. napping
  5. asleep
  6. sleep
  7. dozing
  8. dormant
Adjective
  • An autopsy showed that the infant died from asphyxiation secondary to a co-sleeping/overlay event with an unsafe sleeping environment.
    — Laura Bauer, Kansas City Star, 26 Feb. 2026
Definition of sleeping
Noun
  • Rooms are kitted with slumber-inducing mattresses and lavender-scented eye masks.
    — Lindsay Cohn, Vogue, 7 Oct. 2026
  • The Chicago Cubs picked a bad time to go into an offensive slumber.
    — Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of slumber
Verb
  • Jockeys maintain it with only a few toes resting on each stirrup.
    — Cameron Peters, Vox, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Some of them sat at tables of four in a common area, reading, working on laptops or resting their heads.
    — Rosie Cima, New York Times, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of resting
Verb
  • In school, this might happen when children are sitting very close to each other or napping alongside classmates.
    — Emily J. C. Wong, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The large, breezy beachfront bungalows, meanwhile, have unobstructed views of the Pacific, whirlpool tubs, outside showers and hammocks that serve as prime spots for napping.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of napping
Adjective
  • The only reason to think this may be a game is if the Cowboys are asleep, and Jalon Daniels has some success running the ball.
    — Mac Engel October 8, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Chidgasornpongse crystallizes that cosmic doom further when Grandma Saluay falls half-asleep or stares out the van window, her mind drifting into the ether.
    — Lé Baltar, IndieWire, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of asleep
Noun
  • During sleep, neurons go quiet, ROS are cleared, and damaged mitochondria are repaired or recycled.
    — Rowan Jacobsen, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
  • If your wellness routine already tracks sleep, hydration and screen time, dry eye disease belongs on the list to raise with your eye doctor.
    — Samantha Agate, Sacbee.com, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of sleep
Verb
  • Nothing etches itself in your heart quite like the memory of watching a pack of energetic African wild dogs frolicking, a lioness and her cubs dozing on the Kalahari with your own kids tucked in close.
    — Kathryn Romeyn, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 June 2026
  • Victor Nicholas ended up dozing with his head on her shoulder.
    — Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 28 May 2026
Definition of dozing
Adjective
  • In the team's 3-2 loss to the Cleveland Guardians on Thursday at Progressive Field, the offense was dormant.
    — Ryan Canfield OutKick, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Paramount is taking over the Bay Theater, the long-shuttered cinema at Palisades Village formerly leased by Netflix, adding to a wave of revivals of dormant movie theaters across Los Angeles.
    — Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of dormant

Browse Nearby Words

slumberers
slumbering
slumberous
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Cite this Entry

“Slumbering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slumbering. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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