nocturnal

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   belonging to or active during the night

   nocturnal animals are active at night

2. 2
   adj

   of or relating to or occurring in the night

   nocturnal darkness

3. 3
   adj

   Primarily active during the night.

   nocturnal birds

4. 4
   adj

   Taking place at night, nightly.

   a suspicious nocturnal outing

5. 5
   noun

   A device for telling the time at night, rather like a sundial but read according to the stars.

   A rather different instrument was the nocturnal: it enabled you to tell the time at night, provided you knew the date, from the position of the stars in the constellation of the Great Bear, which rotate around the Pole Star.

6. 6
   noun

   A person or creature that is active at night.

Etymology

From Middle French nocturnal, from Latin nocturnus (“nocturnal, nightly”), from Latin nox (“night”), from Proto-Indo-European *nókʷts (“night”). Cognates include Ancient Greek νύξ (núx), Sanskrit नक्ति (nákti), Old English niht (English night) and Proto-Slavic *noťь.