nightˈdress noun

1. Clothes, esp a woman's or child's loose dresslike garment, for sleeping in
2. A nightgown

night duty noun

Work or duty done at night

nightˈfall noun

1. The onset or beginning of the night
2. The close of the day
3. Evening

nightˈfaring adjective

Travelling by night

night fighter noun

A fighter plane equipped for interception at night

nightˈfire noun

1. A fire burning in the night
2. A will-o'-the-wisp

nightˈ-fishˈery noun

A mode or place of fishing by night

nightˈ-flower noun

A flower that opens by night

nightˈ-flowˈering adjective

nightˈ-fly noun

A moth or fly that is active at night

nightˈ-flyˈing adjective

Flying by night (also noun)

nightˈ-foe noun

Someone who attacks by night

nightˈ-fossˈicker noun (Aust)

Someone who rummages around at night for gold, etc in a mine or other working

nightˈ-founˈdered adjective (Milton)

Lost in the night

nightˈ-fowl noun

A night-bird

nightˈgear noun

Nightclothes

nightˈ-glass noun

A small hand-held telescope with concentrating lenses for use at night

nightˈgown noun

1. A loose robe for sleeping in, for men or women
2. A dressing-gown (obsolete)

nightˈ-hag noun

A witch supposed to be about at night

nightˈhawk noun

1. An American nightjar, genus Chordeiles
2. A European nightjar
3. A person more active at night

night heron noun

A heron of nocturnal habit, of various kinds

nightˈ-house noun (obsolete)

A tavern open during the night

nightˈ-hunter noun

Someone who hunts, poaches or prowls about the streets for prey by night

nightˈjar noun

Any European nocturnal bird of the family Caprimulgidae, related to the swift family

night latch noun

A door-lock worked by a key from outside and a knob from inside

night letter noun (N American)

Formerly, a telegram sent overnight, and so at a cheaper rate

nightˈlife noun

Activity in the form of entertainments at night

nightˈ-light noun

1. A lamp or candle that gives a subdued light all night
2. The faint light of the night
3. The light of phosphorescent sea animals

nightˈ-line noun

A fishing-line set overnight

nightˈ-man noun

A night-watchman, night-worker or scavenger by night

nightˈmare noun

1. (OE mære, ME mare the nightmare incubus; cf OHGer mara incubus, ON mara nightmare) an unpleasant dream
2. A horrifying or difficult experience
3. A dream accompanied by pressure on the breast and a feeling of powerlessness to move or speak, personified as an incubus or evil spirit

nightˈmarish or (rare) nightˈmary adjective

nightˈmarishly adverb

nightˈmarishness noun

night nurse noun

A nurse on duty during the night

night out noun

1. A festive night away from home, work and responsibilities
2. A domestic, or other, servant's night off work

night owl noun

1. An exclusively nocturnal owl
2. A person who sits up very late, or one who is habitually more active, alert, etc at night than during the day (informal)

nightˈ-palˈsy noun (archaic)

A numbness of the legs occurring on waking in the morning and passing off quickly

nightˈpiece noun

1. A picture or literary or musical description of a night-scene
2. A painting to be seen by artificial light

night-porˈter noun

A porter in attendance during the night

nightˈ-rail noun (historical)

A loose wrap or dressing-jacket

nightˈ-ravˈen noun (Shakespeare)

A bird that cries at night, supposed to be of ill omen

nightˈ-rest noun

The repose of the night

nightˈrider noun (US)

1. A member of a secret band of usu white men who carried out lynchings, etc of black people and black sympathizers, esp in the Southern USA after the Civil War
2. A member of the Ku Klux Klan

nightˈ-robe noun

1. A nightgown
2. A dressing-gown

nightˈ-rule noun (Shakespeare)

A revel at night

night safe noun

A safe in the outside wall of a bank, in which customers can deposit money when the bank is closed

night school noun

Classes held at night for people who have left school, esp for those at work during the day

night-seaˈson noun

The night-time

night shift noun

1. A gang or group of workers that takes its turn at night
2. The period for which it is on duty
3. A nightdress (archaic)

nightˈshirt noun

A shirt for sleeping in

nightˈ-shriek noun

A cry in the night

nightˈside noun

The dark, mysterious or gloomy side of anything

nightˈ-sight noun

1. Power of vision by night
2. A sighting device on a camera, rifle, etc to enable it to be used at night

nightˈ-soil noun

The contents of outside lavatories, cesspools, etc generally carried away at night and sometimes used for fertilizer

nightˈ-spell noun

A charm against harm by night

nightˈspot noun (informal)

A nightclub

nightˈstand noun

A bedside table

night starvation noun

Hunger pangs experienced in the middle of the night

nightˈ-steed noun (mythology)

One of the horses in the chariot of Night

nightˈstick noun (N American)

A truncheon

nightˈ-stool noun

A close-stool (qv under close¹) for use in a bedroom

night table noun (N American)

A bedside table

nightˈ-taˈper noun

A night-light burning slowly

night terror or night terrors noun

The sudden starting from sleep in fright

nightˈ-tide noun

1. Night-time
2. A floodtide in the night

nightˈ-time noun

The time when it is night

nightˈ-trippˈing adjective (Shakespeare)

Tripping about in the night

night vision noun

The ability to see in the dark

nightˈ-wakˈing adjective

Remaining awake in the night

nightˈ-walk noun

A walk in the night

nightˈ-walkˈer noun (archaic)

1. A sleepwalker
2. A person who walks about at night, usu for bad purposes, esp a prostitute

nightˈ-warˈbling adjective

Singing in the night

nightˈ-watch noun

1. A watch or guard at night
2. A person who is on guard at night
3. The time of watch at night

nightˈ-watchˈman noun

1. A person who is on watch at night, esp on industrial premises and building sites
2. A relatively unskilled batsman who is sent in to bat towards the end of the day's play in order to prevent a more skilled batsman from having to go in (cricket)

nightˈwear noun

Clothes worn at bedtime and while sleeping

nightˈ-work noun

Work done at night

nightˈ-worker noun

make a night of it

To spend the night, or a large part of it, in amusement or celebration

night-night (informal or childish)

Goodnight

of a night or of nights

1. In the course of a night
2. Some time at night

something of the night

A suggestion of evil or menace