nightlife
Americannoun
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the activity of people seeking nighttime diversion, as at a nightclub, theater, or the like.
-
the entertainment available to them.
noun
Etymology
Origin of nightlife
Explanation
Popular entertainment that happens after dark is called nightlife. In your small town, the nightlife might be all about disco night at the Elks Lodge. Any social activity you take part in at night can be called nightlife, but the word usually describes things like dancing at clubs, big parties, and live music concerts. If you visit a large city, there is going to be more nightlife available than if you spend the summer in remote Alaska. This word, with its original definition, "habitual nocturnal carousing," dates from the 1850s.
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.
Certainly, many who live in Berlin love its rich artistic and cultural life, green spaces, lakes and children's playgrounds, vibrant start-up scene and hedonistic, anything-goes nightlife.
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
They said the problem reflects wider attitudes towards women working in nightlife, rather than being the fault of the venues and promoters themselves.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
The council is trying to kill London nightlife, the Daily Mail proclaimed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
Longtime drinks writers Caroline Pardilla and Esther Tseng, who both started covering bars in the early 2000s, remember a pre-COVID nightlife landscape with later hours, more clubs and fewer alternatives competing for young people’s time.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
The worldly Argentinean grandmaster Miguel Najdorf, who wasn’t playing in the tournament, introduced Bobby to the city’s nightlife, not caring that he was undermining the boy’s possibility of gaining a top spot in the competition.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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.
