not sleep a wink

Meaning

This expression means to get absolutely no sleep at all during the night. It is an emphatic, casual way to complain about severe insomnia or a highly disrupted night of rest. It is almost always used in the negative form.

Examples

• The baby was crying all night, so I didn't sleep a wink.

  The baby was crying all night, so I didn't sleep a wink.

• I didn't sleep a wink last night because I was so worried about my exam.

  I didn't sleep a wink last night because I was so worried about my exam.

• With all that coffee I drank late yesterday, I hardly slept a wink.

  With all that coffee I drank late yesterday, I hardly slept a wink.

• The hotel was so noisy that we didn't sleep a wink.

  The hotel was so noisy that we didn't sleep a wink.

• I didn't sleep a wink because the wind was howling outside my window.

  I didn't sleep a wink because the wind was howling outside my window.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ I didn't close a wink last night.

  ✓ I didn't sleep a wink last night.

  While "wink" refers to closing an eye, the idiom specifically uses the verb "sleep."

• ✗ I slept a wink yesterday.

  ✓ I didn't sleep a wink yesterday.

  This idiom is almost exclusively used in the negative to mean "no sleep." Using it positively sounds unnatural.

Related Expressions

Practice

• I didn't ___ last night because of the loud music next door.

  💡 Got absolutely zero sleep.

  Show answer

  sleep a wink

• With all the excitement before the trip, the kids hardly ___ .

  💡 Remember to conjugate the verb to the past tense.

  Show answer

  slept a wink