What does sleeplessness mean?
Word: Sleeplessness
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Sleeplessness means the state of being unable to fall asleep or to stay asleep.
Word origin: Formed in English from the adjective sleepless, which joins sleep and the old ending less.
How do you spell sleeplessness?
Syllables: sleep - less - ness
Tricky part: The less part keeps both of its s letters even though the word goes on after it, so sleeplesness, with one s in the middle, is the usual slip.
Watch out for: sleeplesness, sleepelessness
Memory tip: Careless becomes carelessly without losing an s, and less behaves the same way here: its double s stays put in the middle of the word.
Sleeplessness in a sentence
Example 1: The night before the school trip, Omar's sleeplessness came from pure excitement.
Example 2: A barking dog next door caused a week of sleeplessness for the whole street.
Example 3: Grandma's answer to sleeplessness is a cup of warm milk and a chapter of a good book.
Fun Fact
Sleeplessness and sleepiness look alike but mean nearly opposite things: one is being kept awake, the other is wanting to nod off.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell Probe
One word in the sentence is misspelt. Choose the meaning of that word:
The coach blamed the team's sleeplessnes on the noisy hotel and moved everyone to quieter rooms on the top floor.
a) a person who trains a sports team
b) a spell of not managing to get any sleep
c) a group of players who compete together
d) a building where travellers pay to stay
Show answer
b) a spell of not managing to get any sleep. Like every word ending in ness, it finishes with a double s.
Sound Check
In which word is 'ee' pronounced differently?
a) beetle
b) freedom
c) career
d) sleeplessness
Show answer
c) career. In career the ee is part of the sound heard in near; the other three have the long ee of see.
Word Champ
Read the three statements and choose the correct option:
1. Sleeplessness is a deep sleep that lasts the whole night. 2. A siesta is a short sleep or rest taken after lunch. 3. Hibernation is the long winter sleep of animals such as hedgehogs.
a) only 1 and 2 are true
b) only 2 and 3 are true
c) all three are true
d) only 3 is true
Show answer
b) only 2 and 3 are true. Siestas and hibernation are real kinds of rest, but sleeplessness is the very opposite of a full night's sleep.
Spell Spies
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) sleeplessness
b) cheerfulness
c) forgetfullness
d) thoughtfulness
Show answer
c) forgetfullness. The ful in forgetful keeps a single l when ness is added, as in thoughtfulness.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which bedtime change would help most with sleeplessness?
a) sleeping with every light switched on
b) switching off screens an hour before bed
c) drinking strong coffee late at night
d) playing loud music at bedtime
Show answer
b) switching off screens an hour before bed
2. Which word could best replace sleeplessness in 'The heat of the summer night caused her sleeplessness'?
a) tiredness
b) restfulness
c) wakefulness
d) drowsiness
Show answer
c) wakefulness
