cat nap
/ˈkæt næp/
CommonA short, light sleep, usually unplanned and wherever you happen to be.
Warmer and more casual than 'power nap'. Implies something that just happened rather than something you scheduled.
Real-world examples3 examples
| # | Example | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | took a cat nap on the couch and woke up at 9pm. it's over. | A short nap turned into a full evening sleep, disrupting the night. | x, 2024 |
| 02 | he's having a little cat nap | Someone is napping, described with affection. | |
| 03 | i just needed a 10 min cat nap and got away with it at my desk | Sneaked a brief sleep at work without being noticed. | x, 2023 |
Use it when
- You dozed off briefly and unplanned.
- A quick sleep happened naturally, not by design.
- You napped somewhere casual, like a couch or a chair.
Do not use it when
- You set a timer and planned your sleep window.Use “power nap” instead.
- You slept for a full hour or more.Use “nap” instead.
Cat nap vs power nap
cat nap
Cat nap just happens. No timer, no planning, no optimization.
VS
power-nap
Power nap is intentional. You schedule it, set an alarm, and treat it like a tool.
Origin and context
Comparison to cats, who are known for sleeping frequently in short bursts throughout the day. The phrase has been in English for at least a century.
- First seen
- early-1900s
- Confidence
- medium
Cite this page
Use this stable URL to reference the entry.
https://slang.fyi/cat-napUpdated: 2026-08-29License: CC BY 4.0