Meaning & use
slept in
Last updated
“slept in” is a form of “sleep in”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meaning
verbintransitive
Stayed in bed later than usual in the morning; got up late on purpose.
Grammar: No object; often used with time expressions like 'this morning' or 'on Saturday'.
Patterns
- slept in this morning
- slept in on Sunday
I slept in this morning and missed breakfast.
We slept in on Saturday because we had no work.
Word forms
| base form | sleep in |
|---|---|
| third person singular | sleeps in |
| past tense | slept in |
| past participle | slept in |
| -ing form | sleeping in |
Common combinations
- slept in late
- He slept in late and missed his alarm.
- slept in on a weekday
- She rarely slept in on a weekday.
- slept in this morning
- They slept in this morning after the party.
- slept in until noon
- I slept in until noon and felt refreshed.
Synonyms and how they differ
- overslept
- Means slept longer than intended, often causing lateness; 'slept in' is usually deliberate and positive.
- had a lie-in
- British noun phrase meaning a morning spent staying in bed; 'slept in' is the verb form.
Opposites
Word family
- sleep-in noun
- British: an occasion of sleeping late, often used in 'have a sleep-in'.
Commonly confused: slept in or overslept?
slept in vs overslept
Overslept means you slept too long and were late; 'slept in' means you deliberately stayed in bed longer.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence.
Choose one answer.
'Slept in' is an intransitive phrasal verb meaning 'got up late'; it does not take a direct object like 'my bed'. Option B correctly uses 'slept in' with a time phrase. Option An adds an unnecessary object, changing the meaning to simply sleeping in a bed. Option C is awkward and ungrammatical. Option D is redundant with both 'late' and 'until 10 a.m.'
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “slept in”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.