On this list of night idioms you’ll find phrases about nighttime, as well as some other expressions that use the word ‘night’ to talk about seemingly unrelated topics.
Idioms are used often in the English language so it’s important to understand them, whether or not English is your first language. That’s why we’ve included definitions and examples for each one. So, from scary to serious and from studying hard to resting, take a dive into these common night sayings.
Night idioms
Night owl
The first of our night idioms describes a person who prefers to be active during the night. A night owl may just go to sleep late, or they may be active into the early hours of the morning.
“I’m not like you night owls! I need to be in bed by 10pm.”
Ships that pass in the night
When two people have a relationship but they barely see each other, they can be described as ships that pass in the night. This relationship idiom is often used to refer to a couple who live together but work different shifts or have busy schedules. It could also refer to people who work together but rarely see each other.
Finally, this night idiom can be about two people who meet and have a passionate or intense relationship, but never see each other again after that.
“I met a great guy when I was backpacking. We hung out for a bit but like two ships that pass in the night, we lost touch and I never saw him again.”
“My wife and I are like two ships that pass in the night now that I’m doing shift work.”
A variation of this expression is like two ships passing in the night.
This saying is taken from a wonderful poem: The Theologian’s Tale; Elizabeth by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
As black as night
If you need a way to emphasize how dark something is, try saying that it is as black as night. This simile means that it’s completely black, without any light or color.
“I don’t like taking the shortcut home because that alley is as black as night.”
This is just one of many color idioms you can use in English.
There are other comparative ways you may talk about how dark something is, such as:
- As black as coal
- As black as the ace of spades
- Pitch black
Call it a night (or day)
Here’s one of our night idioms that also counts as a working idiom. When you call it a night, you decide it is time to stop an activity and either go home or go to bed.
“Ok team, it’s 9pm so I think it’s time to call it a night.”
“I want to finish this project but I can hardly keep my eyes open. I’d better call it a night.”
You can also use the phrase ‘call it a day’. The difference is, if you are stopping during the night (or evening) then you would use ‘call it a night’, whereas if you are stopping at the end of the day, you would use ‘call it a day’.
All night long
Here’s one of the easier night idioms to understand. You could use it literally if a particular task or activity really did take all night. However, it’s more often used as a figurative expression to describe something that happened for much of the night, or intermittently during the night.
This phrase can also be shortened to just all night.
“I think I’m going to fail the test unless I study all night long.”
“That dog was barking all night long; I hardly slept at all!”
“Your uncle was working all night to get your doll’s house finished in time.”
It could even be extended to all day and all night, if the activity continued into the day as well.
Burn the midnight oil
To burn the midnight oil is similar to doing something all night long. It emphasizes that someone spent extra time working, studying, or reading during the night when they would usually be sleeping.
“I burnt the midnight oil last night to be ready for this test.”
“Make sure you don’t burn the midnight oil too often; you need to rest too.”
This is commonly used as an idiom about studying because students so often wait until the last minute to cram for their exams!
Different as day and night / Like day and night
You can use this night idiom to compare two things that are completely different to each other. When you say things (or people) are as different as day and night or like day and night, you are stating that they are totally unlike.
“James and John may be twins, but they are as different as day and night in personality.”
“Teaching kids and teaching adults are like day and night.”
Check out some more ways to compare things in English.
It’ll be alright on the night
When an event or play experiences problems before opening night but you still believe that it will be a success, you can comment it’ll be alright on the night. This means that on the night of the event, everything will work out just fine.
“Oh my word. The rehearsal today was a nightmare but I’m sure it’ll be alright on the night.”
This saying may have originated in theatre but can be used in other settings; for example, when preparing for a business presentation. It doesn’t matter if the event in question is actually going to take place during the day.
Fly-by-night
Sadly, not all night idioms are positive. To describe a person as fly-by-night means that they are untrustworthy or unreliable. This is often used as an expression to describe businesses too, meaning that they operate unscrupulously and may shut down at any moment.
“I made the mistake of ordering from one of those fly-by-night companies and now I can’t get a refund.”
Idioms about night
Night night, sleep tight, and don’t let the bed bugs bite!
This expression is said when wishing someone a good night’s sleep, and it’s an especially fun idiom for children. ‘Sleep tight’ is just a way of wishing someone a good and sound sleep.
“Ok guys, it’s 7 o’clock. Time for bed. Night night, sleep tight, and don’t let the bedbugs bite.”
When you say Night night, sleep tight, and don’t let the bedbugs bite! you can add, for even more fun, (and if they do, squash them!).
In the dead of (the) night
The dead of the night is the time of night when most people are sleeping and everything is quiet. This saying is generally used with reference to something illegal or underhand taking place. In other words, not many good things happen in the dead of night!
“The police caught her creeping around town in the dead of night.”
“They broke into my car in the dead of the night.”
This is a good scary idiom to use if you are writing a spooky story.
You could also use in the middle of the night to refer to some unspecified time during the night, but without such negative connotations.
“I woke up in the middle of the night craving cookies!”
These are both good idioms about time to know.
Pull an all-nighter
When people pull an all-nighter they stay awake all night to complete a task or, more often, study or prepare for something happening the next day.
“We had to pull an all-nighter but thankfully we got the job done.”
Red sky at night, shepherd’s delight. Red sky in the morning, shepherd’s warning.
Believe it or not, this idea appears in the Bible, in the book of Mathew. In fact, there are plenty of Biblical idioms that are still used today.
“Red sky at night, shepherd’s delight. Red sky in the morning, shepherd’s warning” is a saying that is supposed to help predict the weather based on the color of the sky at sunset or sunrise.
People may use just the first half of this expression.
“Looks like there’s no need for an umbrella tomorrow. Red sky at night, shepherd’s delight.”
There is also a version that mentions sailors instead of shepherds. But is there any truth in this saying and what is the science behind it?
Things that go bump in the night
People talk about things that go bump in the night when they hear unexplained noises at nighttime, apparently from supernatural sources such as ghosts, ghouls, and other scary fictitious beings.
“The new house scares me. Things that go bump in the night seem to come out and play at 2am!”
Tossing and turning all night long
The full phrase, tossing and turning all night long, may be shortened to simply tossing and turning. Either way, this is another night idiom that means you didn’t sleep well. It describes the action of continually moving around the bed trying to find a more comfortable position.
See also: Continually vs continuously
“I was tossing and turning all night long; I can’t stop thinking about the wedding arrangements.”
“I wouldn’t recommend that hotel to anyone. The bed was so uncomfortable, I tossed and turned all night long and felt terrible in the morning.”
Some people may use this sleeping idiom when talking about a bad sleep due to being worried about something or feeling ill. In other cases, it’s simply that the bed was not comfortable or something else disturbed them.
Up all night
To be up all night means to not sleep at all. Like a few other night idioms covered here, the lack of sleep may be slightly exaggerated (in which case it is an example of hyperbole). It could just refer to a very poor night’s sleep, perhaps because of stress or some other disturbance.
With that said, it can mean that you literally didn’t sleep at all because you were busy with something else (often partying).
“The baby had us up all night!”
“I was up all night on the toilet; I must have eaten something bad at that buffet.”
“It was so beautiful, we stayed up all night and watched the sun rise over the mountains.”
Did you realize there were so many night idioms in English that cover such a range of topics? This list will help you understand their meaning, so if you’re learning English, try to have a few ready to use in conversation.
If you hear any other idioms about nighttime that you think should be on this list, leave a comment below to let us know!
