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I kept thinking of "spazzing out" but that doesn't quite seem to be it. An example is when you're very tired and kind of dozing off and you say something or ask a question that is incredibly stupid and makes no sense.

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You can say that you're spaced out or zoned out. Spazzed out suggests that you keep dropping your spaghetti fork into someone else's lap. – Bill Franke Jan 17 at 7:06
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Brain fart means something similar. – Andrew Lazarus Jan 17 at 7:20
I see the American English tag, and it seems from this Wikipedia article that spaz/spastic is not particularly offensive. It's very rarely used in British English: even the Spastics Society changed its name to Scope. – Andrew Leach Jan 17 at 7:30
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'Not particularly offensive'? That’s not how I read the article. – Barrie England Jan 17 at 8:10
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@BarrieEngland not particularly in America, which I think is Andrew's point. – Matt Эллен Jan 17 at 13:19
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3 Answers

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This may not be very close to what you are looking for, but freudian slip could be considered. I am suggesting the idiom because the definitions below do hint at saying something stupid.

Freudian slip:

1] If someone makes a Freudian slip, they accidentally use the wrong word, but in doing so reveal what they are really thinking rather than what they think the other person wants to hear. (Source)

2] A slip of the tongue that allegedly reveals repressed desires and thoughts. (Source)

3] an unintentional error regarded as revealing subconscious feelings. (Source)

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There is also malapropism and spoonerism, but I agree Freudian slip is the best answer. – T9b Jan 17 at 21:25
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"Spazzing out" (which is a bit derogatory but not especially offensive) is more about being clumsy. "Spacing out" or "zoning out" cover the sleepy part of the question, but don't really address talking. "Brain fart" does a better job, but that doesn't necessarily have anything to do with dozing off. Really, I'm not too familiar with anyone speaking, sensibly or not, as they doze off. When someone talks in their sleep it is usually pretty silly, but that comes entirely from the unconscious mind. I'm not sure there is a word for this.

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I assume spazzed out derives from the noun spaz = spastic. Even if I'm mistaken, I still think it's a lot more offensive than, say, niggardly – FumbleFingers Jan 17 at 19:19
The offensiveness is subjective, but I think niggardly would be more offensive because it is basically a chosen behavior so the word would be commenting on character more than involuntary movement. Just my opinion, of course. – BSmitty Jan 29 at 15:12
I suppose by some definitions, "offensiveness" is always subjective. But I imagine most UK parents would be absolutely delighted to hear their teenage offspring use such a recondite term as niggardly. Almost nobody in the UK perceives any link between that and nigger (unless they've heard of the occasional kerfuffle in the US, which just makes us roll our eyes). But The Spastics Society changed its name a couple of decades ago because even that form is pretty bad. Spaz falls somewhere between fuck and cunt for most adult Brits. – FumbleFingers Jan 29 at 16:57
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The general English term is sleep talk (or sleep talking). The Latin medical term is somniloquy. Sleep talk can be intelligible or pure gibberish. It can occur in any stage of sleep, including the first stage as one is falling asleep.

A starting point for more information is the “Somniloquy” entry at Wikipedia.¹

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