night

noun

\ˈnīt

Definition of night

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : the time from dusk to dawn when no sunlight is visible The store is open all night.

2a : an evening or night taken as an occasion or point of time the opening night

b : an evening set aside for a particular purpose Thursdays is game night in our house.

3a : the quality or state of being dark approached the enemy's camp under cover of night

b : a condition or period felt to resemble the darkness of night: such as

(1) : a period of dreary inactivity or affliction the glories of Roman civilization were lost in a gloomy night of ignorance, superstition, and barbarism— R. A. Hall

(2) : absence of moral values … that night which has for many centuries obscured our holy religion …— Joseph Priestley

c : the beginning of darkness : nightfall worked in the fields until night

night

adjective

Definition of night (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : of, relating to, or associated with the night night air

2 : intended for use at night a night lamp

3a : existing, occurring, or functioning at night night baseball a night nurse

b : active or functioning best at night night people

Other Words from night Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about night

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Examples of night in a Sentence

Noun

Who are you calling at this time of night? It's eleven o'clock at night. She and her husband both work at night and sleep during the day. The store's open all night. They were up all night long playing video games. Let's stop for the night and get a hotel. a cold, rainy night in the city I stayed up late five nights in a row. Last night, I had the strangest dream. Spend six nights and seven days on a tropical island in the Caribbean!

Adjective

He is taking a night flight. a night manager at the supermarket This is the last night bus.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The two-story villa is set more than 16 feet below the Indian Ocean, and the price tag for a single night is $50,000 — with a minimum four-night stay required. — Stavros Agorakis, Vox, "Vox Sentences: Something to read if you’re still in line to vote," 7 Nov. 2018 This theme continues the following day, as a full moon in Taurus on Wednesday, October 24 electrifies the night sky. — Aliza Kelly Faragher, Allure, "What Your Sign's October 2018 Horoscope Predictions Mean for You," 30 Sep. 2018 There are millions of stars in the night sky, and there’s a good chance nearly all of them have planets orbiting them. — Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, "NASA's New Spacecraft Takes First Photo, Finds First Exoplanet," 19 Sep. 2018 The segment was filmed ahead of Fallon’s hugely anticipated Central Park episode, making The Tonight Show the first-ever late-night show to broadcast from the famed NYC park. — Dan Barna, Teen Vogue, "Justin Bieber Celebrated Halloween Early With a Dark Wig and Baggy Suit," 14 Sep. 2018 Miguel Claro is a professional photographer, author and science communicator based in Lisbon, Portugal, who creates spectacular images of the night sky. — Miguel Claro, Space.com, "See the Moon in All Its Cratered, Groovy Glory (Photo)," 25 July 2018 Of course, this kind of bespoke service and trip doesn’t come cheap: Depending on a variety of factors, a five-night trip for two with Oth’s team in tow can run anywhere from $19,000 to $40,000–or more. — Christina Pérez, Harper's BAZAAR, "The Latest Travel Trend? Bringing a Professional Photo Crew on Vacation With You," 25 July 2018 One of the targets that night was the Stade de France, where the 1998 World Cup had been won, and where the French team was playing a friendly match. — Laurent Dubois, The Atlantic, "France’s Ghosts Return for the World Cup," 14 July 2018 In the meantime the Bulls will be in the East, where a half-decent nucleus has a chance to do some things and make real progress without being smothered by teams full of All-NBA players every other night. — Andrew Sharp, SI.com, "Kevin Knox, Wendell Carter Jr., and Midsummer Hope for the Knicks and Bulls," 13 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'night.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for night

Noun

Middle English night, niht, going back to Old English nieht, niht, umlauted form of neaht, næht, going back to Germanic *naht- (whence Old Saxon & Old High German naht "night," Old Norse nótt, nátt, Gothic nahts), going back to Indo-European *nok^w-t-, whence Old Irish innocht "tonight," Welsh peunoeth "every night" (Welsh nos "night" perhaps going back to *nok^wt-stu-), Latin noct-, nox "night," Old Church Slavic noštĭ, Lithuanian naktìs, Greek nykt-, nýx, Sanskrit nakt-, nak, Hittite nekuz "in the evening" (from an oblique case stem *nek^wt-)