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somnambulism - 8 dictionary results

som⋅nam⋅bu⋅lism

[som-nam-byuh-liz-uhm, suhm-]
–noun
sleepwalking.

Origin:
1790–1800; < NL somnambulismus, equiv. to somn(us) sleep + ambul(āre) to walk + -ismus -ism


som⋅nam⋅bu⋅list, noun
som⋅nam⋅bu⋅lis⋅tic, adjective
sleep·walk·ing   (slēp'wô'kĭng)   
n.  The act or an instance of walking or performing another activity associated with wakefulness while asleep or in a sleeplike state. Also called noctambulism, somnambulism.
som·nam·bu·lism   (sŏm-nām'byə-lĭz'əm)   
n.  See sleepwalking.
som·nam'bu·list n., som·nam'bu·lis'tic adj.

Somnambulism

Som*nam"bu*lism\, n. [Cf. F. somnambulisme. See Somnambulation.] A condition of the nervous system in which an individual during sleep performs actions approppriate to the waking state; a state of sleep in which some of the senses and voluntary powers are partially awake; noctambulism.

somnambulism 
1794 (as somnambulation), from Mod.L. somnambulus "sleepwalker," from L. somnus "sleep" (see somnolence) + ambulare "to walk" (see amble). Won out over noctambulation. To talk in one's sleep is somniloquence (1841).

Main Entry: som·nam·bu·lism
Pronunciation: säm-'nam-by&-"liz-&m
Function: noun
1 : an abnormal condition of sleepin which motor acts (as walking) are performed
2 : actions characteristic of somnambulism —som·nam·bu·lis·tic /(")säm-"nam-by&-'lis-tik/ adjective

somnambulism som·nam·bu·lism (sŏm-nām'byə-lĭz'əm)
n.
See sleepwalking.


som·nam'bu·lis'tic adj.

somnambulism

a behavioral disorder of sleep in which a person sits up and performs various motor actions, such as standing, walking about, talking, eating, screaming, dressing, going to the bathroom, or even leaving the house. The episode usually ends with the sleepwalker returning to sleep, with no subsequent memory of the episode. Sleepwalking is most common in children, though it may also appear in adolescents and young adults. It occurs only during deep sleep, when dreams are basically absent. Sleepwalking becomes dangerous only when the possibility exists of the sleepwalker accidentally injuring himself.

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