microsleep

English

Etymology

From micro- +‎ sleep.

Noun

microsleep (countable and uncountable, plural microsleeps)

1. A brief period of sleep, usually of a few seconds, that may result from sleep deprivation or various medical conditions. [from 20th c.]
   • 2017, Matthew Walker, Why We Sleep, Penguin, published 2018, page 134:

     During a microsleep, your brain becomes blind to the outside world for a brief moment—and not just the visual domain, but in all channels of perception.

   • 2022 April 6, Paul Stephen, “Network News: Croydon crash: driver and transport bodies charged”, in RAIL, number 954, page 9:

     It followed RAIB's conclusion that the driver of tram 2551 had lost attention for a period of several seconds before the accident, possibly due to going into a microsleep.

Translations

brief period of sleep, usually of a few seconds

• Czech: mikrospánek (cs) m
• Spanish: microsueño m

See also

• micronap

Anagrams

• recompiles