The Land of Nod

Preserved but no longer current.

Meaning · English

To go to the land of Nod is to go to bed. There are many similar puns, and more in French than in English.

Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)

Sources & notes

Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.

Common questions

What does “The Land of Nod” mean?

To go to the land of Nod is to go to bed. There are many similar puns, and more in French than in English.

Is “The Land of Nod” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.