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Synonyms

graveyard watch

American  

noun

  1. graveyard shift.

  2. Nautical. middle watch.

Etymology

Origin of graveyard watch

First recorded in 1925–30

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.

Deserter, they’d thundered in the middle of the graveyard watch.

From "An Ember in the Ashes" by Sabaa Tahir

I had the graveyard watch and I was in the galley having a cup of coffee.

From The Space Pioneers by Glanzman, Louis

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.