midnight
Americannoun
adjective
-
of or relating to midnight.
-
resembling midnight, as in darkness.
idioms
noun
-
-
the middle of the night; 12 o'clock at night
-
( as modifier )
the midnight hour
-
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to work or study late into the night
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of midnight
before 900; Middle English; Old English midniht. See mid-, night
Explanation
Midnight is the moment at which one day ends and the next begins — it's twelve o' clock at night. Follow the Fairy Godmother's advice to Cinderella, and always get home before midnight. At midnight, the date changes, and the time changes from PM to AM. It's no surprise that midnight is the very middle of the night, the word itself stemming from the Old English mid-niht, from mid, "among" or "in the middle of," and night, from niht, which appropriately means both "night" and "darkness."
Vocabulary lists containing midnight
Blue
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Non-Color Words to Use When Describing Color
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: mid-
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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.
But he has also said that Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium is so deeply buried in a granite-filled mountain—thanks to last June’s Operation Midnight Hammer bombing raid—that it’s no longer a danger.
From Slate • Jun. 15, 2026
This book, in a very, very subtle way, is having an argument with “The Midnight Library” a little bit, or at least completing the picture.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 25, 2026
Though not a sequel, “The Midnight Train” also plays with multiple universes.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 25, 2026
The Swedish pop star treated the crowds to back-to-back, high-energy pop bangers from her latest album Midnight Sun, alongside a host of fan favourites like Stateside and Pretty Ugly.
From BBC • May 23, 2026
An invitation to a Midnight Dinner is coveted in certain circles.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
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.
