sleep on it

Syllable breakdown

Dictionary meaning

to delay making a decision until the following day in order to allow time for reflection, unconscious processing, and the subsidence of acute emotions that might otherwise distort judgement; research in cognitive psychology and neuroscience supports the folk wisdom behind this phrase, suggesting that sleep facilitates memory consolidation and the reorganisation of information in ways that can improve complex decision-making; the advice to sleep on it is particularly valuable for emotionally charged decisions where the initial reaction may be driven by anxiety, excitement, or anger rather than clear assessment of long-term consequences