night shiftn.
/ˈnʌɪt ʃɪft/, U.S. /ˈnaɪt ˌʃɪft/ 1. A shift or garment worn by women at night; a nightdress.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > clothing for body or trunk (and limbs) > [noun] > shirt > types of > night shirt
nightshirt1657
shirt1681
night shift1690
sleep-coat1948
1690 T. D'Urfey New Poems 72 Closestool was in the Closet shut, The Night-shift gone, and the dear Pot.
1717 G. Jacob Rape of Smock I. 7 Cælia..Slips on her Night-Shift.
1774 E. Francis Jrnl. 28 May in Francis Lett. (1901) I. 195 Still at home..Philip reads to me pretty well, the girls making me some nightshifts.
1820 M. Edgeworth Let. 14 May (1979) 125 The Duchesse d'Angoulême..came out in the dead of night..in her night gown—night shift I believe.
1863 Queen Victoria Let. 8 Apr. in Dearest Mama (1968) 192 Poor, dear Alice had the same night shift on which I had when you were all born!
1923 J. Conrad Rover v. 76 If she had a petticoat over her night-shift, that was all.
1958 New Yorker 13 Dec. 69/2 (advt.) The beautiful night shift..by Barbizon in..nylon satin.
1984 B. Breytenbach Mouroir 118 The house is full of women in white nightshifts.
2.
a. A shift, or group of workers, employed during the night.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > worker > workers according to type of work > manual or industrial worker > [noun] > gang of > types of
day shift1820
night shift1839
black gang1862
gashouse gang1886
nightside1903
1839 A. Ure Dict. Arts 992 At 11 o'clock in the forenoon the night shift of miners was relieved by the day shift.
1887 Pall Mall Gaz. 19 Feb. 8/2 There was consolation..in the fact that the whole of the night shift had not yet descended.
1912 Sphere 28 Dec. 326/1 The night shifts receive so much higher pay for their labour.
1990 T. Robbins Skinny Legs & All 72 The sound of the night shift punching off duty at the bugworks.
b. The time during which such a shift works; the work or duty of such a shift.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > work > times or periods of work > [noun] > spell of work or duty > at night
night duty1838
dogwatch1851
night shift1860
1860 S. Smiles Self-help (new ed.) iv. 82 While working as an engine-man during the night-shifts.
1883 Standard 28 Sept. 3/6 A ‘pare’ of ten men were working at a night shift underground.
1957 F. Hoyle Black Cloud (1960) 162 ‘You're not in a position to modulate the one centimetre yet, are you?’ ‘No, but we can be in a couple of days, if we work night shifts.’
1978 Sunday Times 5 Mar. 18/4 Not that British workers like the night shift.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1690