nocturnal

== English == === Alternative forms === nocturnall (obsolete) === 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. === Pronunciation === (UK) IPA(key): /nɒkˈtɜː(ɹ).nəl/ (US) IPA(key): /nɑkˈtɝ.nəl/ Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)nəl === Adjective === nocturnal (comparative more nocturnal, superlative most nocturnal) (of a person, creature, group, or species) Primarily active during the night. (of an occurrence) Taking place at night, nightly. ==== Antonyms ==== diurnal ==== Coordinate terms ==== crepuscular ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === Noun === nocturnal (plural nocturnals) A person or creature that is active at night. (historical) A device for telling the time at night, rather like a sundial but read according to the stars. Synonym: star clock == Old French == === Adjective === nocturnal m (oblique and nominative feminine singular nocturnale) nocturnal === References === Frédéric Godefroy (1880–1902), “nocturnal”, in Dictionnaire de l’ancienne langue française et de tous ses dialectes du IXe au XVe siècle […], Paris: F[riedrich] Vieweg; Émile Bouillon, →OCLC. == Portuguese == === Adjective === nocturnal m or f (plural nocturnais) pre-reform spelling (used until 1943 in Brazil and 1990 in Portugal) of noturnal; still used where the agreement hasn’t come into effect and may occur as a sporadic misspelling === Further reading === “nocturnal”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026