sleepily

IPA/ˈsliːpɪli/
KK[slˈipəli]IPA/ˈsliːpɪli/

sleepily — adverb

1. with the slow, heavy movements or quiet voice of someone who is about to fall as

1.adverbB1
Definition

with the slow, heavy movements or quiet voice of someone who is about to fall asleep

Example

Sirin rubbed her eyes sleepily and yawned during the morning meeting.

collocation: rub one's eyes sleepily

Rafael answered the phone sleepily, his voice thick and slow.

modifies a verb of speech

Common collocations
  • rub one's eyes sleepily
  • nod sleepily
  • blink sleepily
  • yawn sleepily
  • smile sleepily
  • answer sleepily
  • murmur sleepily
Synonyms
  • drowsily

    more formal or literary; suggests a half-asleep state

  • groggily

    implies confusion or unsteadiness from just waking up, not just tiredness

  • wearily

    broader — can describe physical or mental exhaustion, not specifically the urge to sleep

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

modifies a verb of action or speech

Usage Note

Commonly pairs with verbs of physical action (rub, blink, nod, yawn) or speech (answer, murmur). The adverb describes the manner of the action, not the person — compare 'He looked sleepy' (adjective describing the person) and 'He looked at me sleepily' (adverb describing how he looked).

Common Mistakes

He looked sleepily, with his eyes half closed.
He looked sleepy, with his eyes half closed.
After linking verbs like 'look', use the adjective 'sleepy', not the adverb 'sleepily'.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adverb/1

All three describe a state of low energy, but the cause differs. Drowsily suggests a gentle drift toward sleep — someone reading drowsily is gradually dozing off. Groggily adds disorientation; you wake groggily from deep sleep, not from a nap. Wearily is the broadest — it can cover emotional or physical exhaustion after a long day, not specifically the urge to sleep. For example: 'He drowsily turned the page' (falling asleep while reading); 'She groggily tried to find the alarm clock' (confused and just awake); 'They trudged wearily up the final hill' (tired but not necessarily sleepy).

drowsily ↗groggily ↗wearily ↗

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

Formed from 'sleepy' (from Old English 'slǣpig', meaning 'inclined to sleep') plus the adverbial suffix '-ily'. The adjective 'sleepy' dates back to the early 1200s, and the adverb form 'sleepily' emerged in the mid-1500s.