What is a 'dog-sleep'?
A 'dog-sleep' is a pretended sleep — from the idea that dogs seem to sleep with one eye open. Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898), human-proofread transcription on English Wikisource records: “( A ). A pretended sleep. Dogs seem to sleep with "one eye open."”
Origin
- Verbatim from Brewer's (1898): ( A ). A pretended sleep. Dogs seem to sleep with "one eye open."
How to use it
- Modern usage: A 'dog-sleep' is a pretended sleep — from the idea that dogs seem to sleep with one eye open.
- When quoting the origin, cite Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898) — this is a 19th-century record, not a modern etymology.
Source:
Last verified: 2026-07-18
- Definitions and origins are drawn from public-domain reference works, primarily Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898), with modern usage notes clearly marked.