Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

night watchman

American  
Or night-watchman

noun

  1. watchman.

  2. Cricket. a batsman who is sent in to bat just before the end of a day's play and continues his innings on the next day of play.


night watchman British  

noun

  1. Also called: night watch.  a person who keeps guard at night on a factory, public building, etc

  2. cricket a batsman sent in to bat to play out time when a wicket has fallen near the end of a day's play

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of night watchman

First recorded in 1860–65

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:

Reyne took over as night watchman, with his tent on the asphalt in the parking lot behind.

From Slate Mar. 25, 2026

At the time of the record destruction, which was revealed by a night watchman who saw it happening and saved some documents, UBS was under scrutiny for its wartime activities.

From The Wall Street Journal Feb. 3, 2026

Last month, Richard Abath, the night watchman who mistakenly allowed in the thieves, died at 57.

From New York Times Mar. 18, 2024

It was while working as a night watchman on a dive boat that Reginald was encouraged to venture into the water.

From BBC Dec. 9, 2023

The men dove behind chairs as the Norwegian night watchman walked up.

From "Bomb" by Steve Sheinkin

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