goodnight
goodnight Lexical Profile
goodnight Game Scores & Validity
• interjection
Used to express good wishes when parting in the evening or before going to bed.
"Goodnight, everyone—see you bright and early tomorrow morning!"
• noun
An utterance of farewell or good wishes spoken in the evening or before going to sleep.
"We said our goodnights at the front door before heading home."
• adjective
Said, given, or occurring when parting at night or just before going to sleep.
"The children asked for one more goodnight story before turning off the lamp."
Word Nuance & Usage
While often written interchangeably as one word or two ('good night'), the single-word form 'goodnight' is typically preferred in modern usage when functioning as a noun or an attributive adjective before a noun (e.g., 'a goodnight kiss').
• Rhymes for goodnight
Word Origin & Etymology
Formed in Middle English as a contraction of the phrase 'I wish you a good night,' combining Old English 'gōd' (good) and 'niht' (night).