night owl

noun

: a person who keeps late hours at night

Synonyms of night owl

• nighthawk

Examples of night owl in a Sentence

a night owl whose spouse is more of an early bird

Recent Examples on the Web

That’s why the Timeshifter jet lag app asks for your age, your usual sleep times, your caffeine and melatonin habits, and your chronotype—early bird, night owl, or neither. — Jd Shadel, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Sep. 2026

Quarterfinal Tuesday brought another somewhat nightmarish scenario for everyone except the true night owls. — Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026

Some of the bodily clocks that affect you every day are the sleep-wake, or circadian, rhythm and your chronotype, which is the body’s natural timing preference—often described as being either an early bird or a night owl. — Masha Remskar, Scientific American, 29 Aug. 2026

Fall is here and early risers and night owls know that when the sun is down, feet get chilly. — Annie Blackman, InStyle, 29 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1594, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for night owl

• afoul
• wildfowl
• foul
• foule
• fowl
• growl
• howl
• jowl
• prowl
• scowl
• waterfowl

Kids Definition

night owl

noun

: a person who usually stays up late at night