nightfall

American  

[nahyt-fawl] / ˈnaɪtˌfɔl /

noun

1. the coming of night; the end of daylight; dusk.

   Synonyms:

   sundown, twilight

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nightfall British  

/ ˈnaɪtˌfɔːl /

noun

1. the approach of darkness; dusk

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Etymology

Origin of nightfall

First recorded in 1605–15; night + fall

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Explanation

Nightfall is the part of a day when the sun goes down and evening begins. In suburban neighborhoods, parents often call their kids to come home for dinner at nightfall. It gets dark at nightfall, marking the end of the day. You can also all this time dusk or twilight. If your dad warns you to be home from your bike ride by nightfall, he wants you home before sunset. Nightfall has a bit of an old fashioned, poetic sound, and it dates from the early eighteenth century, a combination of night, from the Old English niht, or "darkness," and fall, or "come suddenly."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

nightfall

Aerial support crews, grounded by bad weather earlier in the week, hoped to keep operating until nightfall, when civil protection drones would take over the task of monitoring for "potential flare-ups," the governor's statement said.

From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026

These eight steps can help keep bedrooms cooler before nightfall.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026

And the case ever since has been nearly as obscured as the Catalina Foothills after nightfall - beset by everything from tricky terrain to law enforcement infighting.

From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026

In it, a husband and wife adopt a cat, Sheila, who develops an unnerving disposition come nightfall.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2026

Just after nightfall we finally come to another settlement, another one with docks on the river, another one abandoned.

From "The Knife of Never Letting Go" by Patrick Ness

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Related Words

• dusk
• sundown
• sunset

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