night walkingn.
/ˈnʌɪt ˌwɔːkɪŋ/, U.S. /ˈnaɪt ˌwɔkɪŋ/, /ˈnaɪt ˌwɑkɪŋ/ The action of walking or going about at night, formerly esp. for the purpose of crime or revelry; an instance of this. Also: sleepwalking.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > progressive motion > walking > [noun] > walking at night
night walkingc1430
the world > the supernatural > supernatural being > evil spirit or demon > [noun] > nightmare or nocturnal demon > going about at night
night walking1584
the world > movement > progressive motion > walking > [noun] > walking in sleep
walking1607
night walking1621
noctambulation1721
somnambulation1794
sleepwalking1797
somnambulism1797
noctambulism1807
somnambulency1829
somnambulance1885
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of internal organs > stupor or coma > [noun] > sleep-walking
night walking1621
noctambulation1721
somnambulation1794
sleepwalking1797
somnambulism1797
noctambulism1807
somnambulency1829
somnambulance1885
c1430 in D. Knoop & G. P. Jones Mediæval Mason (1933) 270 Bi the whiche manere of nyȝtwalking thei may not fulfyll ther days werke and traueyll thorow the condicion heier felaus myȝt be made wrowthe.
1459 Ayr Burgh Court Bks. 29 Oct. That thai..consider..the rewle of thair seruands in al maner of gyding, playing, nychtwalking and vtheris.
a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) II. f. lxxii Certayne persones yt thyder were commytted by Sir Iohn Bryton, then Custos or Gardeyn of the Cytie for nyght walkyngs.
1584 R. Scot Discouerie Witchcraft x. ix. 185 Witches nightwalkings are but phantasies and dreames.
1618 M. Dalton Countrey Justice 66 Such nightwalkings are vnfit for honest men, and more suiting to the theefe.
1621 R. Burton Anat. Melancholy i. ii. ii. vii. 118 After hard meates it [sc. sleep] increaseth fearefull dreames, Incubus, nightwalking.
1671 R. Head & F. Kirkman Eng. Rogue IV. xi. 203 Their Trade thus miserably decaying, they resolved to trie what effects Night-walking would produce.
1704 J. Evans Proclam. in Boston News-let. 30 Oct. 2/1 I do hereby strictly forbid all manner of Debauchery, Lewdness, Drunkenness,..Night-walking at unseasonable hours, without lawful Business [etc.].
1823 J. K. Paulding Koningsmarke II. ix. ii. 242 The conversation turned on..the fate of the goblin Cupid, and his mysterious grandmother, whose night walkings still continued the common theme of the village.
1863 A. Trollope Rachel Ray I. v. 98 I don't like night walkings in churchyards, certainly.
1872 E. Lynn Linton Joshua Davidson iii. 33 A wild whisht country that does not invite much night walking.
1927 J. Lomax Cowboy Songs 148 And when I regain my liberty, bad company I'll shun, Night-walking, gambling, and also drinking rum.
1943 A. M. Maynard in D. Ibberson Our Towns 135 Look for signs of bitten finger-nails, night walking or excitability.
1990 Biotropica 22 6/2 We logged about 500 person hours of night walking through the woodland and along the river.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.c1430