Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom. Forty winks

Concept

An idiom is a fixed expression whose accepted figurative meaning may differ from the literal meanings of its individual words.

Its meaning is determined by established usage, not by adding the dictionary meanings of the words.

Application

In established English usage, “forty winks” means a short sleep or nap, often taken during the day. Therefore, the matching value is “a brief nap or short sleep.”

Contrast

• “A brief study” concerns a short period of learning or review; it is not the conventional meaning of this idiom.

• “A brief history” is a concise account of past events or development; it is not the meaning of this expression.

• “A brief description” is a short account of features or qualities; it is not the established sense of this idiom.

Cross-check

Substituting “a short nap” into “take forty winks” gives the natural sense “take a short nap”; study, history, and description do not fit the established idiomatic use.

Thus, the idiom means “a brief nap or short sleep.”