twilight

noun

twi·​light ˈtwī-ˌlīt 

often attributive

1

a

: the light from the sky between full night and sunrise or between sunset and full night produced by diffusion of sunlight through the atmosphere and its dust

especially : such light immediately following sunset

b

: a time of twilight

2

a

: an intermediate state that is not clearly defined

… lived in the twilight of neutrality …

—Newsweek

b

: a period of decline

Synonyms of twilight

• dark
• dusk
• shadows
• night
• darkness
• blackness
• black
• gloom

Examples of twilight in a Sentence

The sun set and twilight fell.

stumbled around the twilight of the shuttered room, unable to see where she was going

Recent Examples on the Web

All of that and more makes for an enticing season ahead, and a lot to wonder about, with the 2026 Chiefs … and their capacity to add more luster to Arrowhead’s legacy in its twilight years. — Kansas City Star, 16 Aug. 2026

With Swift and Kelce married and heading into the twilight of their NFL power, the heir apparent to TV face time appears to be the 27-year-old Beer. — Joe Kinsey Outkick, FOXNews.com, 14 Aug. 2026

Read on to see spectacular photos of the sun's corona glowing in the false twilight of totality. — Anthony Wood, Space.com, 12 Aug. 2026

The sky darkens to twilight, exposing the sun's corona and sometimes revealing stars and planets as temperatures briefly cool. — Stephen J. Beard, USA Today, 11 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing twilight

• twilight glow
• twilight world
• twilight zone

Rhymes for twilight

• affright
• airtight
• albite
• alight
• alright
• aplite
• aright
• bainite
• birthright
• bobwhite
• bornite
• bullfight

Kids Definition

twilight

noun

twi·​light ˈtwī-ˌlīt 

: the period or the light from the sky between full night and sunrise or between sunset and full night