- of, done, or happening in the night
- functioning or active during the night
- Bot. having blossoms that open at night
Origin of nocturnal
Late Middle English from Late Latin nocturnalis from Classical Latin nocturnus from nox (gen. noctis), night
Bats are nocturnal.
The definition of nocturnal is something that is active or happens during the night.
An example of a nocturnal animal is a bat.
YourDictionary definition and usage example. Copyright © 2018 by LoveToKnow Corp
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"Nocturnal." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal.
APA Style
Nocturnal. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal
nocturnal
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"Nocturnal." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal.
APA Style
Nocturnal. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal
nocturnal
adjective
- Of, relating to, or occurring in the night: nocturnal stillness.
- Botany Opening at night. Used of flowers.
- Zoology Most active at night: nocturnal lizards.
Origin of nocturnal
Middle English from Old French from Late Latin nocturnālis from Latin nocturnus from nox noct- night ; see nekw-t- in Indo-European roots.Related Forms:
- noc·tur′nal·ly
adverb
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"Nocturnal." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal.
APA Style
Nocturnal. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal
- Occurring at night.
- Most active at night. Many animals, such as owls and bats, are nocturnal.
- Having flowers that open during the night and close at daylight. Nocturnal plants are often pollinated by moths.
Compare diurnal
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"Nocturnal." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal.
APA Style
Nocturnal. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal
Adjective
(not comparable)
- (of a person, creature, group, or species) Primarily active during the night.
- nocturnal birds
- (of an occurrence) Taking place at night.
- a suspicious nocturnal outing
Antonyms
Origin
From Latin nocturnus (“nocturnal, nightly"), from Latin nox (“night"), from Proto-Indo-European *nókÊ·ts (“night"). Cognates include Ancient Greek νÏξ (nuks), Sanskrit नकà¥à¤¤à¤¿ (nákti), Old English niht (English night) and Proto-Slavic *noťь.
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"Nocturnal." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal.
APA Style
Nocturnal. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal
nocturnal - Medical Definition
adj.
- Relating to or occurring in the night: nocturnal stillness.
- Zoology Most active at night: nocturnal lizards.
Related Forms:
- noc·tur′nal·ly
adv.
The American Heritage Dictionary of Medicine © 2018 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"Nocturnal." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal.
APA Style
Nocturnal. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Nocturnal
Sentence Examples
- It was not unlike any night's nocturnal hallucination.
- His ears perked up at the mention of Dean's nocturnal adventure.
- Bats are social, nocturnal and they migrate to a warmer climate, or hibernate.
- They are mainly nocturnal, and subsist chiefly on bark and twigs or the roots of water plants.
- The above figure is coloured black as befits a funerary and nocturnal animal: it is more attenuated than even a greyhound, but it has the bushy tail of the fox or the jackal.
» more...
WORDS NEAR nocturnal IN THE DICTIONARY
- nocturnal
- noctules
- noctuoidea
- nocturia