寝る
neru[ne̞ɾɯ̟]
The Japanese phrase for 'go to sleep' is 寝る (neru).
寝る is used when someone is beginning to sleep or is going to bed for the night. It can also be used literally to mean lying down or reclining.
Which one should you use?
While 寝る focuses on the act of going to bed or lying down, the verb 眠る focuses more on the physiological state of being asleep or the act of falling asleep.
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb changes based on the tense and intent: 寝た is the past tense (went to sleep/slept), 寝ない is the negative form (not sleep) and the te-form 寝て can be used as a soft command or request to 'please go to sleep'.
How do you pronounce it?
neru
When do people say it?
When you want to say 'good night' to someone before they go to sleep, you can use the formal phrase Oyasumi nasai to bid them farewell.
Did you know?
- Historically, the act of 寝る involved sleeping on a futon that is placed on tatami mats and then rolled up and stored away during the day.
- When someone is unconscious or dead, Japanese speakers use 眠る instead of 寝る to convey a deeper, more permanent state of rest.
- The phrase 寝坊する combines the concept of sleep with the concept of making a mistake to mean 'to oversleep'.
Examples in context
- 寝る時間よ。It's time to go to sleep.This sentence uses 寝る to indicate it is time for sleep.Tatoeba #145662 by bunbuku, translation #399124 by catakaoe
- 眠いからもう寝るね。I'm tired, so I'm gonna go to sleep.This sentence uses 寝る to express an intention to go to sleep because of tiredness.Tatoeba #4457110 by tommy_san, translation #4635221 by mactrey
- 寝るな。寝たら死ぬぞ。Don't go to sleep. If you do, you'll die.This sentence uses 寝る in a prohibitive command to not sleep.Tatoeba #11610460 by small_snow, translation #11610463 by CK
- 5 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
A couple is talking at home before the end of the day.
- 大翔 Hirotoそろそろ寝る？sorosoro neru?Are you going to sleep soon?
- 美咲 Misakiうん、今日はもう寝るね。un, kyou wa mou neru ne.Yeah, I'm going to sleep now.
- 大翔 Hirotoおやすみ、ゆっくり寝てね。oyasumi, yukkuri nete ne.Good night, get some good sleep.
- 美咲 Misaki大翔くんもおやすみ。hirotokun mo oyasumi.Good night to you too, Hiroto.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 寝る, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
