@ Asker 18:34 Apr 16, 2020
There is a nuance of meaning here that requires a good deal of native-speaker "feeling" to judge.
'asleep' specifically opposes 'awake'; but also, it is not a verb, so when a verb-form is needed, we have to use 'to be asleep' etc. In many cases, either could be used... but in certain instances, one or the other 'feels' better.
Don't forget, the simple present ('she sleeps', etc.) is less commonly used in everyday language than in other European languages — and mainly only for habitual actions, like "he sleeps on the couch during the week"; so if we need a 'continuous present', we more commonly probably say "tonight she is sleeping downstairs because of the cold" — note that in this example, we could not interchange it with 'is asleep'! But for example "because of the cold, she couldn't sleep last night, and look, now, here she is asleep in her chair". | 
peer agreement (net): +4
