dozy

/'douzi/

Thân thiện

The tired child looks dozy in the back seat of the car.

Definition

Adjective: 1. Feeling sleepy or drowsy; inclined to doze or nap: Describes a state of being half-asleep, not fully alert, often due to tiredness, boredom, or a relaxing environment. 2. Showing a lack of energy or alertness; sluggish: Can describe a person, animal, or even a mood that is slow and lethargic.

Usage and Examples

• Describing a sleepy person:
  • After lunch, I always feel a bit dozy and struggle to concentrate.
  • The warm classroom made the students dozy.
• Describing a state of reduced alertness:
  • He gave a dozy nod, barely following the conversation.
  • The dozy cat stretched out in the sunbeam.

Advanced Usage and Nuances

• "Dozy" vs. "Sleepy": While both mean inclined to sleep, "dozy" often implies a milder, more passive state of drowsiness where one might drift in and out of sleep, whereas "sleepy" can indicate a stronger need for proper sleep.
• Informal/Colloquial Use (British English): In informal British English, "dozy" can be used to describe someone as stupid, slow-witted, or inattentive in a mildly insulting way.
  • Don't be so dozy! You've forgotten your keys again.

Variants and Related Words

• Doze (verb): To sleep lightly or nap.
  • I managed to doze for an hour on the train.
• Dozing (adjective/participle): In the act of sleeping lightly.
  • The dozing passenger missed his stop.
• Drowsy (adjective): Very similar in meaning to "dozy," meaning sleepy and lethargic.

Synonyms

• Sleepy
• Drowsy
• Groggy
• Lethargic
• Somnolent

Antonyms

• Alert
• Awake
• Energetic
• Vigilant

Idioms and Phrases

• To have a doze: To take a short, light sleep.
  • I'm just going to have a doze in the armchair.
• (As) dozy as a dormouse: A simile emphasizing extreme sleepiness or sluggishness (note: this is a creative, illustrative example rather than a fixed idiom).
  • Without my coffee, I'm as dozy as a dormouse all morning.

Học thuật

Adjective

1. half asleep
   • made drowsy by the long ride
   • it seemed a pity to disturb the drowsing (or dozing) professor
   • a tired dozy child
   • the nodding (or napping) grandmother in her rocking chair

Từ đồng nghĩa

• drowsy
• drowsing