What's the difference between
and
Enter two words to compare and contrast their definitions, origins, and synonyms to better understand how those words are related.

Overnight vs Nocturnal - What's the difference?

overnight | nocturnal |

As adjectives the difference between overnight and nocturnal

is that overnight is occurring between dusk and dawn while nocturnal is primarily active during the night.

As an adverb overnight

is throughout the night.

As a verb overnight

is to stay overnight; to spend the night.

As a noun overnight

is items delivered or completed overnight.

overnight

English

Adverb

(-)
  • Throughout the night.
  • :
  • *
  • *:There was also hairdressing: hairdressing, too, really was hairdressing in those times — no running a comb through it and that was that. It was curled, frizzed, waved, put in curlers overnight , waved with hot tongs;.
  • *{{quote-news, year=2012, date=November 20, author=Nina Bernstein, work=New York Times, title= Storm Bared a Lack of Options for the Homeless in New York
    • , passage=Overnight , as the storm bore down on urban flood zones, city officials ramped up emergency spaces to shelter thousands more people, mostly in public schools and colleges.}}
  • During a single night.
  • :
  • In a very short (but unspecified) amount of time.
  • :

    • Adjective

    (-)
  • Occurring between dusk and dawn.
    • ''The overnight ferry docked at 10AM.
  • Complete before the next morning.
    • Don't expect results overnight .

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To stay overnight; to spend the night.
  • * 2002 , , The Great Nation , Penguin 2003, p. 128:
    • His visits to Paris (which he had not allowed his son to visit until he was a teenager) became less frequent too: he never over-nighted there, for example, after 1744.
  • (US) To send something for delivery the next day.
    • We can overnight you the documents for signature.

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • Items delivered or completed overnight.
    • Have you looked at the overnights yet?
  • An overnight stay, especially in a hotel or other lodging facility.
  • (obsolete) The fore part of the previous night; yesterday evening.
    • (Shakespeare)

    nocturnal

    English

    Adjective

    (-)
  • Primarily active during the night.
  • (of an occurrence) Taking place at night.
  • * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-01-01
    • , author=Paul Bartel, Ashli Moore , title=Avian Migration: The Ultimate Red-Eye Flight , volume=101, issue=1, page=47–48 , magazine= citation , passage=Many of these classic methods are still used, with some modern improvements. For example, with the aid of special microphones and automated sound detection software, ornithologists recently reported […] that pine siskins (Spinus pinus ) undergo an irregular, nomadic type of nocturnal migration.}}

    Antonyms

    * diurnal

    Coordinate terms

    * crepuscular