nocturnal

AI In plain words

Writing a short explanation…

Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.

nocturnal

/nɒkˈtɜː.nəl/ UK
/nɑkˈtɝ.nəl/ Atlantic Canada, US
/nɒkˈtɝ.nəl/ Canada, dialectal
/nɔkˈtɜː.nəl/ Australia
[nɔ̟kˈtøː.nəl] New Zealand

Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)nəl

Where it comes from

From Middle French nocturnal, from Late Latin nocturnālis (“nocturnal”), from Latin nocturnus (“nocturnal”), from Latin nox (“night”), from Proto-Indo-European *nókʷts (“night”). Cognates include Ancient Greek νύξ (núx), Sanskrit नक्ति (nákti), Old English niht (English night) and Proto-Slavic *noťь.

adjective more nocturnal · most nocturnal · nocturnall

Of a person, creature, group, or species, primarily active during the night. nocturnal birds
Opposite: diurnal
Of an occurrence, taking place at night, nightly. a suspicious nocturnal outing

Similar: lucifugous, nightish, nightly, nighttime, nocturnal · Opposite: diurnal, nonnocturnal

noun nocturnals · nocturnall

A person or creature that is active at night.
historical A device for telling the time at night, rather like a sundial but read according to the stars. A rather different instrument was the nocturnal: it enabled you to tell the time at night, provided you knew the date, from the position of the stars in the constellation of the Great Bear, which rotate around the Pole Star.
Similar: star clock

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: nighttime, nightly, nocturne, overnight, late-night, night-time, night, dark, hypsiglena, night-vision, after-dark, noctivagant, starry, moonlit, evening, vespertine

adjective

Similar: lucifugous, nightish, nightly, nighttime, nocturnal · Opposite: diurnal, nonnocturnal

Translations

Every language

adj primarily active during the night

Español	nocturno, noctámbulo, trasnochador, noctívago, nocherniego, nocheriego
한국어	야행 yahaeng, 야행성 yahaengseong
日本語	夜行, 夜行性 yakōsei
中文	夜的 yè de, 晝伏夜出 /昼伏夜出 zhòufúyèchū
हिन्दी	निशाचर niśācar, रजनीचर rajnīcar
Português	noturno
Français	nocturne
Deutsch	nachtaktiv
Italiano	notturno
Ελληνικά	νυκτόβιος nyktóvios
Русский	ночно́й nočnój

adj taking place at night

Español	nocturno, nochero, nocherniego, nocheriego
한국어	밤의 bamui, 야간의 yaganui
日本語	夜の yoru no, 夜間の yakan no
中文	夜間的 /夜间的 yèjiān de
हिन्दी	रात्रिक rātrik
Français	nocturne
Deutsch	nächtlich
Ελληνικά	νυχτερινός nychterinós, νυχτιάτικος nychtiátikos
Русский	ночно́й nočnój
العربية	لَيْلِيّ layliyy

Talk about this word

Cite this

MLA

"nocturnal." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/nocturnal. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

nocturnal. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/nocturnal

Chicago

"nocturnal." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/nocturnal.

BibTeX

@misc{nocturnal_2026,
  title = {nocturnal},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/nocturnal},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}