one-night stand

noun

1

: a performance (as of a play or concert) given (as by a traveling group of actors or musicians) only once in each of a series of localities

2

a

: a locality used for one-night stands

b

: a stopover for a one-night stand

3

: a sexual encounter limited to a single occasion

also : a partner in such an encounter

Examples of one-night stand in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In the opening minutes of the premiere, tech mogul Morgan (Dominic West), either a hundred-millionaire or a billionaire depending on who’s asking and why, has a one-night stand with a beautiful stranger (Rose William’s Flora). — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2026

Their one-night stand at his college dorm veers, throughout the years, into the unexpected twists and turns of an authentically modern love story. — Jack Smart, PEOPLE, 10 Sep. 2026

In the special — watch a clip above — Morril tackles his worst one-night stand gone wrong, the dark humor of infamous assassinations, his bizarrely unorthodox war against rats, and more. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 10 Sep. 2026

When the bro-country era featured songs about field parties, drinking and one-night stands, cultural double standards put women at a disadvantage. — Tom Roland, Billboard, 10 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1880, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for one-night stand

• analysand
• misunderstand
• ampersand
• beforehand
• behindhand
• bottomland
• contraband
• countermand
• dixieland
• fairyland
• fatherland
• firebrand