What does catnap mean?
A catnap is a short, light sleep, usually taken during the day and lasting anywhere from a few minutes to half an hour. The word works both as a noun — 'I need a catnap before the evening drive' — and as a verb — 'she catnapped on the train home'. Its imagery comes straight from feline behavior: cats famously sleep in many small bursts rather than one long stretch, so calling a human snooze a catnap emphasizes its brevity and lightness. Informal but not slangy, it appears frequently in everyday conversation, lifestyle writing, and health journalism, where brief daytime sleeps are often discussed positively as a way to restore alertness. Compared with the more general word nap, catnap suggests something even shorter and lighter — a doze snatched between tasks rather than a planned period of rest. It is standard throughout the English-speaking world and carries warm, unpretentious connotations.
A short, light sleep, especially one taken during the day.
"After the long flight, she revived herself with a quick catnap in the hotel lobby."
Often modified by adjectives indicating brevity, such as 'quick', 'brief', or 'ten-minute'.
To take a short, light sleep.
"Grandpa tends to catnap in his armchair every afternoon."
Typically intransitive; common in progressive forms ('was catnapping').
Standard plural; also functions as the third-person singular verb form ('he catnaps daily').
"Short catnaps during the day helped her cope with night shifts."
The 'cat' in catnap is doing real work: it likens your twenty-minute doze to the way cats sleep in short bursts throughout the day — up to sixteen hours' worth.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of catnap
Catnap is a compound of 'cat' and 'nap', formed in English. The element 'nap', meaning a short sleep, first appears in English in the Middle English period, though its deeper origins are uncertain. The word catnap arose by analogy with the way cats characteristically take many brief sleeps throughout the day, using 'cat' as a descriptive modifier for a very short doze. It belongs to a family of English compounds that employ 'cat' figuratively, alongside words such as catcall and catnip.
How catnap is actually used
Informal to neutral in register, catnap is common in everyday speech and journalism but less frequent in formal writing. The verb is typically intransitive. The word carries mildly affectionate, cozy connotations rather than suggesting laziness, and is often used of naps squeezed into a busy schedule.
Easily confused with catnap
A nap is any short sleep, while a catnap specifically suggests a very brief, light doze, often taken while sitting up or in the middle of activity.
A siesta is a longer afternoon rest, traditionally after lunch in hot climates, whereas a catnap lasts only minutes.