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PlainSpell

asleep

/əˈsliːp/adjective

asleep is spelled A-S-L-E-E-P: 6 letters and one syllable. It appears 23 times per million words in written English, the 3,875th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, asleep means “In a state of sleep; also, broadly, resting” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in asleep?

Letters6: A-S-L-E-E-P
Syllables1
In writing23 times per million words; the 3,875th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search
Same letters

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.

How common is asleep?

Asleep appears 23 times per million words in written English, the 3,875th most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce asleep?

  • /əˈsliːp/

Asleep has one syllable.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-asleep.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with asleep?

No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as asleep.

Spelled with the same letters in another order: please, elapse, sapele.

Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).

What does asleep mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

adjective

  1. 1

    In a state of sleep; also, broadly, resting.

    I was asleep when you called.

  2. 2

    slangInattentive.

    How could you miss that? Were you asleep?

  3. 3

    Having a numb or prickling sensation accompanied by a degree of unresponsiveness.

    My arm fell asleep. You know, like pins and needles.

  4. 4

    Dead.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Asleep in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchendormi (in a state of sleep)
Germanschlafend (in a state of sleep), eingeschlafen (numb or prickling)
Portuguesedormindo (in a state of sleep), dormente (numb or prickling)
Spanishdormido, jato (in a state of sleep)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does asleep come from?

From Middle English aslepe, equivalent to a- (“in, on”) + sleep.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after asleep