nighttime

American

[nahyt-tahym] / ˈnaɪtˌtaɪm /

noun

the time between evening and morning.

adjective

occurring, done, presented, etc., during the night, especially the hours before midnight.

Etymology

Origin of nighttime

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at night, time

Vocabulary lists containing nighttime

Unit 6, Week 5

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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.

It will be the site of an immersive nighttime show for tourists during the World Cup this summer, the Mexico state government announced earlier this month.

From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026

It wasn’t until I read two books, both in the early 1990s, that I understood I was making my nighttime selections in such a particular way.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

Artemis II pilot Victor Glover heard the call of the terminator: the border between the moon’s daytime and nighttime — the lunar dawn.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

To test this, the team fed fruit flies caffeine under different conditions, including varying doses, daytime versus nighttime exposure, and combinations with sleep deprivation.

From Science Daily • Mar. 31, 2026

Most of the children were sleeping, though it wasn’t nighttime.

From "A Place to Belong" by Cynthia Kadohata

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023