寝る
neru[ne̞ɾɯ̟]
To sleep in Japanese is 寝る (neru).
寝る is the general verb used for the act of going to bed for the night or the act of sleeping. It is also frequently used to mean the act of 'going to bed'.
Which one should you use?
While 寝る is the general term for going to bed or sleeping, the verb 眠る is used more specifically to describe the physiological state of being in a deep sleep or being unconscious.
How does it change in a sentence?
The polite form of 寝る is 寝ます. To express that the action happened in the past, use 寝た (slept). If you want to describe a continuous state, such as someone who is currently in the middle of sleeping, use the form 寝ている.
How do you pronounce it?
neru
Did you know?
- In Japanese, the word for 'sleep' is used in the term 寝相 (ne-sō), which refers to the physical shape or position a person takes while sleeping.
- The kanji for 寝る contains the radical for 'roof', which visually represents the idea of being under a structure to rest.
- The word 眠る (nemuru), the physiological counterpart to 寝る, is also used in a poetic sense to describe things like 'fading away' or 'becoming silent'.
Examples in context
- 寝る時間よ。It's time to go to sleep.This sentence is useful for stating that it is time to 寝る.Tatoeba #145662 by bunbuku, translation #399124 by catakaoe
- そろそろ寝るね。It's about time to sleep.This sentence is useful for announcing that you are about to 寝る.Tatoeba #3137104 by tommy_san, translation #5261070 by Blurk
- 眠いからもう寝るね。I'm tired, so I'm gonna go to sleep.This sentence is useful for explaining that you are going to 寝る because you are tired.Tatoeba #4457110 by tommy_san, translation #4635221 by mactrey
- 寝る前にお茶を飲みましょう。Before sleeping, let's have some tea.
- 明日は早く就寝する必要があります。You need to sleep early tomorrow.
- お母さん、もうお休みになってください。Mother, please go to sleep.
- 昨夜はよく寝た？Did you sleep well last night?
- ねよう、明日は早いよ。Let's sleep, we have an early day tomorrow.
- 24 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Misaki and Yota are talking at home late at night.
- 美咲 Misaki陽太、まだ起きてるの？Yōta, mada okiteru no?Yota, are you still awake?
- 陽太 Yotaうん、本を読んでるよ。Un, hon o yonderu yo.Yeah, I'm reading a book.
- 美咲 Misaki明日早いから、早く寝るね。Ashita hayai kara, hayaku neru ne.I have an early start tomorrow, so I'm going to sleep now.
- 陽太 Yotaわかった。おやすみ。Wakatta. Oyasumi.I understand. Goodnight.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 寝る, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 寝る, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
