Meaning & use
sleep like a baby
Last updated
Meanings
phraseidiom
To rest very deeply and peacefully all night, without waking up.
Grammar: Used with a subject and no object: she slept like a baby.
Patterns
- someone sleeps like a baby
- someone slept like a baby
- someone has slept like a baby
After the long hike, I slept like a baby until my alarm rang.
The new mattress is so comfortable that I sleep like a baby every night.
He was worried about the exam, but he still slept like a baby.
phraseidiomfigurative
To be completely relaxed and untroubled, as if nothing is worrying you.
Grammar: Often used in the negative to say someone cannot relax: I can't sleep like a baby with all this noise.
Patterns
- can't sleep like a baby
- sleep like a baby despite something
With three deadlines this week, I can't sleep like a baby.
She slept like a baby even though the storm was loud outside.
Common combinations
- sleep like a baby all night
- The baby monitor was quiet because he slept like a baby all night.
- sleep like a baby after something
- After the marathon, she slept like a baby.
- sleep like a baby through something
- He slept like a baby through the thunder.
- sleep like a baby every night
- Since we moved to the quiet countryside, we sleep like a baby every night.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sleep soundly
- More neutral and slightly more formal; it simply means sleeping well, without the image of a peaceful baby.
- sleep deeply
- Focuses on how hard it is to wake you; it does not suggest feeling calm or untroubled.
- be out like a light
- Informal and means falling asleep very quickly, not necessarily sleeping peacefully.
Opposites
Word family
- baby noun
- A very young child, the image behind the expression.
- babysitter noun
- A person paid to look after a child.
Commonly confused: sleep like a baby or sleep in?
sleep like a baby vs sleep in
'Sleep in' means staying in bed later than usual in the morning; 'sleep like a baby' describes the quality of your sleep, not the time you get up.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'sleep like a baby' correctly?
Choose one answer.
The expression describes deep, peaceful sleep, so 'all night and woke up refreshed' fits. Option 1 is wrong because a ten-minute nap is not deep night sleep, option 2 is unlikely because coffee prevents good sleep, and option 4 makes no sense because the phrase is not used about topics.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sleep like a baby”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.