está durmiendo
/esta duɾmjendo/from spelling rules
The phrase "he is sleeping" in Spanish is translated as está durmiendo.
This phrase describes a person who is currently in a state of sleep.
Which one should you use?
While está durmiendo emphasizes the ongoing action right now, duerme is the simple present form used to say "he sleeps" or "he is sleeping" in a more general sense.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase está durmiendo can mean "he is sleeping", "she is sleeping" or "it is sleeping" depending on the context, as the subject pronoun is omitted.
Did you know?
- If someone is sleeping very deeply, you might hear the phrase se quedó frito, meaning 'he stayed fried'.
- In Spanish, the word for 'sleep' and 'dream' is the same word, sueño, making the distinction dependent entirely on the context of the sentence.
- The word dormitorio for 'bedroom' comes directly from the root of durmiendo, meaning it is literally the 'sleeping room'.
Examples in context
- Él está durmiendo en su habitación.He is sleeping in his room.
- Él está en pleno sueño y no debemos molestarlo.He is deeply asleep, and we shouldn't disturb him.
- Está durmiendo en el sofá.He is sleeping on the couch.
- Él está durmiendo en el sofá.He is sleeping on the sofa.
- No lo despiertes, está durmiendo.Don't wake him up, he is sleeping.
- El bebé está durmiendo ahora.The baby is sleeping now.
Example conversation
In a living room where Daniel is trying to talk to María about her brother.
- Daniel¿Dónde está tu hermano?Where is your brother?
- MaríaÉl está durmiendo en su habitación.He is sleeping in his room.
- DanielEstá muy cansado hoy.He is very tired today.
- MaríaSí, trabajó todo el día.Yes, he worked all day.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
