Sleep on

Meaning

The idiom "sleep on" means to wait or delay taking action until a better opportunity presents itself, or not to worry about something because it will be sorted out later. It implies that the speaker has decided to postpone an action until a more opportune moment rather than making a hasty decision.

Usage

• I think we should sleep on the proposal and wait for more information before making a decision.
• He was feeling down but I told him to sleep on it and come back to me when he's feeling better.
• We'll sleep on this until we have all the necessary information.
• Don't worry too much about it, just sleep on it and it will work out in the end.
• It's too early to make a decision, we should sleep on it and see what happens.

Roots and History

The idiom "sleep on" has been in use since at least the 16th century. Its literal meaning was related to resting until something happened or was decided. Over time, the figurative meaning developed, suggesting postponing an action until a better opportunity presented itself.

Synonyms in English

• Wait it out
• Hold off on making a decision
• Give it time
• Let's see what happens
• Hold your horses

Synonyms in other languages

• 搞一下 (Tiāo yī xià) - Chinese (搞一下 means to delay or postpone something)
• אין־מנוין (Ein-Munoyn) - Hebrew (אין־מנוין means not yet)
• סכום תורה (S'kum Torah) - Hebrew (סכום תורה means a postponement or delay of a decision)
• מלוא בטח (Meloue Bitach) - Hebrew (מלוא בטח means a postponement or deferral of something)
• מזעת נפש (Merzat Nepsho) - Hebrew (מזעת נפש means a delay in doing something)

Similar Idioms

• from now on

• shed light

• sense of humour