“sleep is a natural reversible process of rest, typically occurring every night and lasting for several hours, in which an individual is of limited consciousness and unresponsive to outside stimuli, with the eyes closed and a relaxed body a process during which predictable and complex changes occur.” Putting all these into one, we could make a unified definition: If we take these definitions together and extract all sleep-defining information, we get a list of sleep characteristics like this one. “a normal, reversible, recurrent state of reduced responsiveness to external stimulation that is accompanied by complex and predictable changes in physiology.”Īnd then goes on to describe the physiological changes, from brain activity, to how sleep affects the entire body. The Encyclopedia Britannica defines sleep as: Sleep has also been described as a behavioral state marked by characteristic immobile posture and diminished but readily reversible sensitivity to external stimuli.” “a period of rest for the body and mind, during which volition and consciousness are in partial or complete abeyance and the bodily functions partially suspended. The Free Medical Dictionary offers the longest and fullest of the definitions: “a periodic state of rest accompanied by varying degrees of unconsciousness and relative inactivity.” “a natural periodic state of rest for the mind and body, in which the eyes usually close and consciousness is completely or partially lost, so that there is a decrease in bodily movement and responsiveness to external stimuli”. Stedman’s Medical Dictionary defines sleep as: Looking at medical dictionaries, we find somewhat more information explained in medical vocabulary. The Oxford dictionary has paid the most attention to giving an easy-to-understand, but also substantial, definition. “a condition of body and mind which typically recurs for several hours every night, in which the nervous system is inactive, the eyes closed, the postural muscles relaxed, and consciousness practically suspended”.Īll of these definitions can successfully convey the meaning of sleep to someone who is wondering about the basic meaning of sleep. In the Oxford English Dictionary, sleep is defined in scientific detail, as follows: “a natural state in which you are unconscious for a time and your body rests, especially for several hours at night”. The MacMillan Dictionary also gives a simple, yet more detailed explanation: “the natural periodic suspension of consciousness during which the powers of the body are restored”. Merriam-Webster offers a minimalistic definition: Here we present different non-medical and medical definitions of sleep. To define sleep we need more details and scientifically-proven facts.
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