somnambulation

som·nam·bu·late

(sŏm-năm′byə-lāt′)

intr.v. som·nam·bu·lat·ed, som·nam·bu·lat·ing, som·nam·bu·lates

To walk or perform another act while asleep or in a sleeplike condition.

som·nam′bu·lar (-lər) adj.

som′nam·bu·la′tion n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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Noun

somnambulation - walking by a person who is asleep

noctambulation, noctambulism, sleepwalking, somnambulism

walk, walking - the act of traveling by foot; "walking is a healthy form of exercise"

sleeping - the suspension of consciousness and decrease in metabolic rate

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References in periodicals archive ?

The metaphor that controls Shangri-La, "Blue Moon" (Karakal), is unique in its application of ironic stillness as the operating function of an ambulatory satellite; the metaphor aligns with readings of Shangri-La as a reserve of the past and brings with it connotations of somnambulation apropos to the dream world.

Consuming Tibet: imperial romance and the wretched of the holy plateau

Usually, I meander naked down the corridor to my office (averting my eyes from the full length mirror) before struggling into clothes whilst in a state of near somnambulation. At this time in a morning, it takes me all my time to concentrate on getting my knickers on, never mind trousers, as I have frequently been close to a nasty accident with one foot in and one foot out.