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Meaning & use

wakefulness

noun·Academic

Last updated

UK/ˈweɪkfʊlnəs/
US/ˈweɪkfəlnəs/

Meanings

  1. noununcountable

    The condition of being awake and not asleep.

    Grammar: No plural and no article needed: wakefulness returns in the morning.

    Patterns

    • a state of wakefulness
    • wakefulness and sleep

    Researchers measured the brain's activity during sleep and during wakefulness.

    Caffeine can prolong wakefulness well into the night.

    The patient drifted between wakefulness and a light doze.

  2. noununcountableliterary

    A period when you cannot sleep, especially at night, because of worry, noise or excitement.

    Grammar: Often used with night: a night of wakefulness, not a wakefulness.

    Patterns

    • hours of wakefulness
    • a night of wakefulness

    Her long hours of wakefulness were filled with worry about the exam.

    After a night of wakefulness, he felt dull and slow at work.

    The baby's crying caused several weeks of wakefulness for the whole family.

Common combinations

state of wakefulness
The drug leaves people in a calm state of wakefulness.
periods of wakefulness
Newborns have short periods of wakefulness between sleeps.
promote wakefulness
Bright morning light helps promote wakefulness.
drowsiness and wakefulness
The test measures drowsiness and wakefulness in drivers.
hours of wakefulness
Hours of wakefulness at night left her exhausted.

Synonyms and how they differ

alertness
Alertness stresses being mentally quick and ready to react, while wakefulness only means not being asleep.
insomnia
Insomnia is a long-term difficulty sleeping, whereas wakefulness can be a normal healthy state or a single bad night.
sleeplessness
Sleeplessness focuses on the lack of sleep and is usually negative, while wakefulness can be neutral.

Opposites

sleepdrowsiness

Word family

awake adjective
not sleeping
wakeful adjective
unable to sleep, or alert
wakefully adverb
in a wakeful way
wake verb
to stop sleeping

Commonly confused: wakefulness or awareness?

wakefulness vs awareness

Awareness means knowing about or noticing something; wakefulness means simply not being asleep.

Practice

Scientists studied the brain during sleep and during ____.

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