graveyard shift
Americannoun
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a work shift usually beginning at about midnight and continuing for about eight hours through the early morning hours.
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those who work this shift.
noun
Etymology
Origin of graveyard shift
An Americanism dating back to 1905–10
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.
The graveyard shift will become the domain of retail investors and specialized firms.
From Barron's • Oct. 23, 2025
Long-time evening anchor Wolf Blitzer was also asked to move to the mornings and, in a certain light, Acosta's potential bump to the graveyard shift can be seen as an accommodation of that.
From Salon • Jan. 17, 2025
I also hadn’t done my hearing any favors by working the graveyard shift at a nightclub during college—eight uninterrupted hours at a stretch of noise exposure that vastly exceeded safe levels.
From Slate • Oct. 20, 2024
A 28-year department veteran, Fortney worked the graveyard shift as a patrol sergeant and served as president of the Deputy Sheriff’s Association before ascending to sheriff.
From Seattle Times • Nov. 17, 2023
She grabs my arm outside the Skulls' barracks, where I was heading for a bit of rest before a graveyard shift on the wall.
From "An Ember in the Ashes" by Sabaa Tahir
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.
