sleep of the just

/ˈsliːp əv ðə ˈdʒʌst/

//ˈsliːp əv ðə ˈdʒʌst// noun

"sleep-of-the-just" is a 14-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“sleep of the just” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
17
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A deep and worry-free sleep.

Corpus desk

Index EN-sleep-of-the-just · sleep of the just · English

sleep of the just · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 17 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "S" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for sleep of the just
PropertyValue
Headwordsleep of the just
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsliːp əv ðə ˈdʒʌst/
Letters17
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “sleep of the just” in English

sleep of the justsits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

sleep of the just is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈsliːp əv ðə ˈdʒʌst/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

sleep of the just doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From the idea that people who act justly have no worries and so sleep well, while unjust people are concerned about the consequences of their actions and so sleep poorly. The correct English form is sleep of the just, spelled S-L-E-E-P- -O-F- -T-H-E- -J-U-S-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    A deep and worry-free sleep.
  2. 2
    A peaceful death or burial.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how sleep of the just appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Make your mind easy, Percival. Sleep, my son, the sleep of the just; and see what I will do for you when daylight comes to help us both.
  2. Then—Smith went to bed, and slept the sleep of the just, with not a glimmering of an idea that he was not the unselfishest and lovingest of husbands.

Etymology

From the idea that people who act justly have no worries and so sleep well, while unjust people are concerned about the consequences of their actions and so sleep poorly.

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "sleep of the just"?
"sleep of the just" is spelled S-L-E-E-P- -O-F- -T-H-E- -J-U-S-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsliːp əv ðə ˈdʒʌst/.
What does "sleep of the just" mean?
As a noun, "sleep of the just" means: A deep and worry-free sleep.
How do you pronounce "sleep of the just"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sleep of the just" is /ˈsliːp əv ðə ˈdʒʌst/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "sleep of the just"?
From the idea that people who act justly have no worries and so sleep well, while unjust people are concerned about the consequences of their actions and so sleep poorly. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list