eve
1 Americannoun
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(sometimes initial capital letter) the evening or the day before a holiday, church festival, or any date or event.
Christmas Eve; the eve of an execution.
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the period preceding or leading up to any event, crisis, etc..
on the eve of the American Revolution.
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the evening.
noun
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(in the Bible) the name of the first woman: wife of Adam and progenitor of the human race.
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a female given name: from a Hebrew word meaning “life.”
noun
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the evening or day before some special event or festival
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( capital when part of a name )
New Year's Eve
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the period immediately before an event
on the eve of civil war
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an archaic word for evening
noun
Etymology
Origin of eve
1200–50; Middle English; variant of even 2
Explanation
An eve is the day — or night — just before some event. You might call the day before your birthday your "birthday eve." Some holidays are well-known for having the proceeding days distinguished as eves: many of us celebrate New Year's Eve, others gather for meals on Christmas Eve or Passover Eve, and the word "Halloween" comes from "All Hallow's Eve." The word eve is sometimes also a shortened form of evening, the last part of the day: "It stays light so late on a summer's eve."
Vocabulary lists containing eve
Scrabble: Palindrome Words
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3-letter words, List 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Investigators say he was in the area working as an Uber driver and dropping off passengers on New Year’s Eve near an area where he formerly lived.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 10, 2026
“We were just trying to show them that it’s really important, and we’ll try to help you get started,” said Crumm, , a financial planner and owner of Belle Eve Financial.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 8, 2026
Research compiled by Eve Boboch, Kathy Donnelly, Eric Krull and Kurt Daill in the book “The Lifecycle Trade” found that more than 90% of IPOs eventually trade below their first-day low.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 6, 2026
Now, the Oscar-winning director is returning to that theme once again with Disclosure Day, a sci-fi thriller starring Emily Blunt, Josh O'Connor, Colman Domingo, Colin Firth and Eve Hewson.
From BBC • Jun. 4, 2026
“Then how come you Eve in a hotel?” demanded Brad.
From "Ralph S. Mouse" by Beverly Cleary
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.