late-night

late-night — adjective

1. Happening, appearing, or available very late in the evening, typically after mos

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

Happening, appearing, or available very late in the evening, typically after most people would normally be asleep or after usual business hours.

Example

Valentina works the late-night shift at the hospital's emergency room.

collocation: late-night shift

The network cancelled the late-night talk show after viewer numbers fell.

collocation: late-night talk show

Common collocations
  • late-night shift
  • late-night talk show
  • late-night snack
  • late-night movie
  • late-night bus
  • late-night call
  • late-night diner
Synonyms
  • nighttime

    broader in meaning — 'nighttime' covers the whole night, not specifically the late part

  • after-hours

    more specific — refers to activities after official closing time, often in entertainment or business contexts

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

late-night + noun

Usage Note

Attributive only — always placed before the noun it modifies. Common with nouns describing work shifts, television programmes, meals, and services.

Common Mistakes

The party was late-night.
It was a late-night party.
'late-night' is used attributively before a noun, not as a predicate adjective.

late-night — noun

late-night — phrase

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All four words describe things that happen during the night, but they differ in timing and register. 'Late-night' is the most specific — it refers to the very late part of the night (roughly midnight to dawn) and typically describes attributive uses like shows, shifts, or snacks. 'Nighttime' is broader, covering the entire period from sunset to sunrise (a 'nighttime routine' could start at 8 PM). 'After-hours' specifically means after official closing time — it is common in business and entertainment contexts ('after-hours club,' 'after-hours trading'). 'Nocturnal' is more formal or scientific, usually describing animals or biological rhythms ('nocturnal owls') and sounds technical when applied to human behaviour. For a general-purpose description of something happening very late at night, 'late-night' is the natural everyday choice.

nighttimeafter-hoursnocturnal

Common collocations

Phrases

  • have a late night
  • pull a late night
  • another late night
  • too many late nights

Prepositions

  • after a late night
  • during a late night

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishModern English

A compound formed from 'late' (from Old English 'læt', meaning slow or tardy) and 'night' (from Old English 'neaht' or 'niht', meaning the period of darkness). The adjective use describing events or broadcasts in the later part of the night became common in the mid-20th century alongside the rise of late-night television programming and round-the-clock services.