nocturnal

C1 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /nɑkˈtɝ.nəl/ UK /nɒkˈtɜː(ɹ).nəl/ See IPA manual

Freq #20236

Meanings

1

adj
Active at night rather than during the day.

Owls and bats are nocturnal animals.
2

adj
Happening during the night.

His nocturnal wanderings kept the whole house awake.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

lucifugousnightishnightly nighttime

Opposites

diurnalnonnocturnal

Word family

Derived forms noctophobianocturnalismnocturnalistnocturnalitynocturnallynonnocturnalseminocturnal

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

nocturnal emission
ejaculation that occurs during sleep

Adjective + noun

Simplified etymology

Nocturnal, recorded from the late Middle English period, derives from Latin nox, “night.” The Latin word and English night ultimately come from the same ancient root.

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.

nocturnal Middle French nocturnus Latin nox Latin *nókʷts Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# nocturnal

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /nɑkˈtɝ.nəl/
**IPA (UK):** /nɒkˈtɜː(ɹ).nəl/
**Frequency rank:** 20236

## Meanings
1. Active at night rather than during the day.
2. Happening during the night.

## Examples
- Owls and bats are nocturnal animals.
- His nocturnal wanderings kept the whole house awake.

## Synonyms
- lucifugous
- nightish
- nightly
- nighttime

## Antonyms
- diurnal
- nonnocturnal

## Derived Forms
- noctophobia
- nocturnalism
- nocturnalist
- nocturnality
- nocturnally
- nonnocturnal
- seminocturnal

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: nocturnal
- Root: nocturnus
- Root: nox
- Root: *nókʷts

## 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.

## AI Etymology
Nocturnal is 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. In present-day use, it can mean active at night rather than during the day, or happening during the night. Derived formations include noctophobia, nocturnalism, nocturnalist, nocturnality, and nocturnally.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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