Meaning

noun a light fitful sleep

verb sleep lightly or for a short period of time

verb be on the verge of sleeping

originThe verb is either: * a back-formation from drowsy, which is attested earlier; or * possibly from Middle English *drousen (no known attestations), from Old English drūsan, drūsian (“to droop, sink; to become feeble, inactive, low, or slow, drowse”), from Proto-Germanic *drūsijaną (“to look down; mourn”) (possibly merged with *dreusaną (“to fall”)), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰrewHs- (“to break…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0