Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

night court

American  

noun

  1. a criminal court that convenes at night for the quick disposition of charges and the granting of bail.


Etymology

Origin of night court

First recorded in 1930–35

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.

See Examples For:

Mystery still shrouds Zhang’s escape in July, following a late night court hearing in Mexico City when a judge unexpectedly granted him house arrest.

From The Wall Street Journal Oct. 23, 2025

The reboot has been spearheaded by Melissa Rauch, a former star of “The Big Bang Theory” who is the new night court judge and the sunshine to Larroquette’s gloom.

From Seattle Times Jan. 1, 2024

Giuffre made the charge in a Monday night court filing opposing Andrew's motion to dismiss her civil lawsuit stemming from their ties to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.

From Reuters Nov. 30, 2021

He “hung out around grimy boxing rings and gangsterish social clubs and the city night court; he observed inveterate gamblers and exhausted dance marathoners and denizens of the racetrack.”

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 8, 2021

“The courthouse, quickly. The night court should still be open downtown, unless the riots shut it down.”

From "Dactyl Hill Squad" by Daniel José Older

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Join 12,000,000 vocabulary learners

Start learning new words today on VocabTrainer.
You'll remember them forever.

Start training