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
-
-
to work or study late into the night
Other Word Forms
- midnightly adjective
- postmidnight adjective
- premidnight noun
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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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.
France also saw a major reduction, with nighttime brightness falling by 33 percent as many cities turn off streetlights after midnight to conserve energy and limit light pollution.
From Science Daily • Apr. 9, 2026
Kuwait asked residents to avoid going outside from midnight until Wednesday morning, hours ahead of the US deadline.
From Barron's • Apr. 7, 2026
Following Carpenter on opening night is electronic artist Anyma, who is debuting a production called “Æden” at midnight on the Coachella stage.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026
Before midnight US time the rescue was complete, and the airman was flown to Kuwait for medical treatment, officials said.
From BBC • Apr. 5, 2026
Had he saved the cranky cat from Freddy only to have Tiamat down it for a midnight snack?
From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville
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.
