nightclub
Americannoun
verb (used without object)
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of nightclub
Explanation
A nightclub is a bar or a disco where people can dance or be entertained late into the night. There are many nightclubs in New York City, but there are no nightclubs at all in most tiny Vermont villages. Visitors to a nightclub can eat and drink; watch singers, dancers, or comedians perform; and usually also dance to live music or songs played by a DJ. You can also call a nightclub a "club" for short — the dance floor is what distinguishes it from a bar or a pub. The word nightclub sounds modern, but it dates from the late nineteenth century.
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:
“The center of social gravity has moved from the nightclub to the workout, the class and the calmer room.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
A nightclub cannot replace courts, organizing, voting, or protest.
From Salon ● Jul. 20, 2026
He relishes classical concerts and playing the trombone in a Bourbon Street nightclub.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
Stokes' last domestic 50-over cricket anywhere was a stint playing for Canterbury in New Zealand in 2017, during the period when he missed England's Ashes tour of Australia following an incident outside a Bristol nightclub.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
Now he’s making his living being funny as a nationally known stage and nightclub comedian.
From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey
Martin and Lewis became the monarchs of all media, conquering radio, nightclubs, television and the silver screen.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2026
Unpopulated nightclubs as empty as a cemetery at midnight.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
Thailand's lax approach to health and safety regulations -- particularly in its bars and nightclubs -- has long raised concerns.
From Barron's ● Jul. 12, 2026
Besides, if Stokes leaves nightclubs before the curfew, his interaction with the board will be limited, so long as England start winning Test matches.
From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026
Reginald and I went to the Savoy Ballroom, the Apollo Theater, the Braddock Hotel bar, the nightclubs and speakeasies, wherever Negroes played music.
From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey
In some cases he promised marriage, even proposing to one woman while engaged to another and nightclubbing with a third.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 4, 2018
I’m sure that in his nightclubbing life in New York he was delighted to rub shoulders with prominent black athletes and so forth.
From Slate ● Oct. 24, 2016
"You need to live your life in a more mature way, stop the nightclubbing and focus on your work," Sautner said.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 29, 2012
Things you did to entertain yourself 10 years ago don't apply to you when your kids are nearly 10, nightclubbing, things like that.
From Reuters ● Aug. 1, 2012
Jack Ravenhurst went into her own room after flashing me a rather hurt smile that was supposed to indicate her disappointment in not being allowed to go nightclubbing.
From A Spaceship Named McGuire by Garrett, Randall
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.
