nightmare 
Stars shoot and in< i< -m* glmr . id. -nur across tin- va!l'-> 
than in any other part of the i-oiintry, and the nightmare, 
with lior whole nine fold, seems to make it the favorite 
scene <>t her gambols. Irving, Skctch-ltook, p. 418. 
2. An oppressed st;ite 'hiring sleep, accompa- 
nied In ;i (<< 'ling of intense fear, horror, or anx- 
iety, or of inability to escape from some threat- 
ened danger or from piirstiing phantoms or 
monsters. Also called ineubiu. 
Wliat natural effects can reasonably be expected, when 
to prerent the ephialtes or night-mare we hang up a hoi. 
low stono in our stables? Sir T. Browne, Vulg. Err., 1. 24. 
In savage aniniism, us among the Australians, what we 
i -;tll .1 .li'flitmarc is of course recognized as a demon. 
i'nci/c. Brit., VII. 62. 
3. Any overpowering, oppressive, or stupefy- 
ing influence. 
nightmarish (uit'mar-ish), a. [< nightmnri- + 
-iWi 1 .] Like a nightmare. 
A Chronicle of Two Months Is a somewhat niyhhnarith 
performance. The Academy, Oct. 6, 188, p. 210. 
night-martt (nit'inart), . Trading or bargain- 
ing carried on at night; concealed or deceitful 
dealings. 
The many many faults (as they report) of Mariner! in 
primito truckings 4 night-mart*, both with our men and 
sauages. Purchcut, Pilgrimage, p. 700. 
night-monkey (nlt'muug'ki), n. A night-ape 
or owl-monkey, 
night-moth (uit'in&th), n. Any moth of the 
family Xueluidte, 
night-oldt (nit'old), a. [< ME. nyght-ol<l, < AS. 
iiilit-eaM, a night (or a day) old: see night and 
oW.] Having happened or been made or gath- 
ered yesterday. 
Laboreres that ban no londe to lyuen on bote here handes 
Deyned noght to dyne a-day nyyht-olde wortes. 
Ken Plowman (C), ix. 33-2. 
night-owl (nit'oul), . [= D. nachtuil = G. 
iiachteiilf = Icel. nattugla = Sw. nattugla = 
Dan. iiatuylc: as night + otcl.~] An owl of no- 
tably or exclusively nocturnal habits. All owls 
are nocturnal, but some less so than others, and 
nii/lit-oicl is used in contrast to day-owl. 
AY>//<' "' shriek where mountain larks should sing. 
Shalt., Rich. II., ill. S. 183. 
night-palsy (nit'oWzi), n. Numbness of the 
extremities coming on at night: it occurs 
sometimes in women at the menopause. 
night-parrot (nit'par'ot), n. The kakapo or 
owl-parrot of New Zealand, Stringoim habropti- 
Itifi. 
night-partridge (nit'par'trij), . The Amer- 
ican woodcock, Philohela minor. [Maryland 
and Virginia.] 
night-peck (nit'pek), . The American wood- 
cock, Philohela minor. [North Carolina.] 
night-piece (uit'pes), . 1. A picture repre- 
senting some night-scene ; a nocturne ; also, a 
picture so painted as to show to the best ad- 
vantage by artificial light. 
He hung a great part of the wall with night-pieces, that 
seemed to show themselves by the candles which were 
lighted up, and were so Inflamed by the sun-shine which 
fell upon them that I could scarce forbear crying out Are. 
Aililitnn. (Latham.) 
2. A piece of literary composition descriptive 
of a scene by night. 
His [Parnell's] "Sight-pirn on Death" was Indirectly 
preferred by Goldsmith to dray's celebrated Elegy. 
Chamber?* Eng. Lit., Parnell. 
night-porter (nit'por'ter), . A porter or an 
attendant who is on duty at night in a hotel, 
infirmary, etc. 
nightrailt(nit'ral), . [< night + rai&.~\ 1. A 
nightgown. 
Sickness feign'd. 
That your night raits of forty pounds apiece 
Might be seen with envy of the visitants. 
Maainger, City Madam, iv. 4. 
Four striped muslin night-rail very little frayed. 
Steele, Taller, No. 245. 
I could wager a rose-noble from the posture she stands 
in that she has clean head-gear and a boiled night-rail. 
Scott, Fortunes of Nigel, xvii. 
2. A head-dress, apparently a kind of cap or 
veil, worn in the sixteenth and seventeenth 
centuries. 
night-raven (nit'ra'vn), n. [< ME. nyghte ra- 
mi,< AS. iiilillini'fii, tiilitrufi n. iiulilli // t'ii, naeht- 
In-iiifii, nilillir' j'i'ii. niliti'i fit, iiilitlin inn, etc. ( = D. 
inii-litrtiiij' = MLli. mi i'li t ni nn = OHG. mil/t- 
hru ban, MlUi. (i. nin-htriihi' = Icel. ndtfhrafn = 
Dan. niitli-nini), < nilit, night. + lin-fn. raven.] 
Abiril that crips in the uight; the night-heron. 
Also called nitiht-rroir. 
The yiulitnnifii or Crowe is of the same manner of life 
that thr O\v]e is, for thut she onely comineth :ibro<le in the 
darke night, tlcing the daylight and Sunne. 
ilaptet, A Greene Forest, p. 44. (Cath. AIUJ.) 
M'.r.', 
I pray God his bad voice bode no minchlef. I luul u 
li< f have heard tin- ni'ihl fur, n. i-mni- wiiiit plaifUr could 
have come after It. Shale., Much Ado, II. 3. 84. 
Woody Nightshade (.tola a urn 
Dulcamara). 
night-robe (nit 'rob), . A nightgown. 
All in her night-rube loose she lay reclined, 
Ami, pensive, read from tablet churnim- 
Borne strain that seemed her inmost soul to find. 
Scott, L. of L. M., vi. 1!'. 
night-rulet (nit'riil), . A night revel; a tumult 
or trolic in the night. 
How now, mad spirit ! 
What night-rule now about this haunted grove? 
Shot., M. N. D., UL -L 5. 
nights (nits), tirlr. [< MK. niijhlfn, < AS. nihtfn 
(= OS. nahtex = OFnes. nachtm = ( )1 1( :. nnliti .. 
MHG. nachti'x, (i. inn-lit*), at night, adverbial 
gen. of niht, night: see night.'] At night; by 
night. [Obsolete, or colloq., U. S.] 
Bltterllche shallow banne thanne bothe dayes and nigte* 
Couctyse-of-eyghe that euere thow hlr knewe. 
Pirn Plowman (B), xL 30. 
"So thievish they hev to take In their stone walls night*. " 
. . . And, by the way, the Yankee never says "o' nights," 
but uses the older adverbial form, analogous to the German 
nachtt. Lowell, Blglow Papers, 2d ser., Int. 
night-school (nlt'skdl), . A school which is 
held at night, especially for those who cannot 
attend a day-school. 
night-season (nit'se'zn), n. The time of night. 
Ps. xxii. 2. 
nightshade (nit'shad), n. [< ME. "nightshade, 
< AS. nihtucada (= D. uachturhade = MLG. 
nachtfichaden, nacht- 
scheden = OHO. naht- 
scato, MHG. naht- 
nehate, G. nachtsehat- 
ten), nightshade (a 
plant), < niht, night, + 
xriiniiiii, shade. The 
lit. sense is modern.] 
1. A plant of the genus 
Solanum, or of the So- 
lanaceie or nightshade 
family, (o) Chiefly, S. ni- 
yrum, the common or black 
nightshade, a homely weed 
of shady places, or S. Dul- 
camara, the bittersweet or 
woody nightshade. See bit- 
terftceet, 1. (6) The bellii- 
donna or deadly nightshade. 
See Mi'i'im. atropin, and belladonna, (c) The henbane or 
stinking nightshade. See henbane and Hyotcyamut. 
2. The name of a few plants of other orders, 
as below. 
Here and there some sprigs of mournful mint, 
Of nightshade, or valerian, grace the well 
He cultivates. Cowper, Task, Iv. 757. 
3t. The darkness of the night. 
Through the darke night-shade* herselfe she drew from 
sight Phaer, tr. of .Eneld, II. (Latham.) 
4t. A prostitute. [Cant.] 
Here comes a night thade. 
Beau, and Fl., Coxcomb, II. 2. 
Deadly nightshade, a poisonous plant, Atropa lletladon- 
na. See belladnniM. Enchanter's nightshade, see 
enchanter. Malabar nightshade, a plant of the Che- 
nnpodiacetr, Ratelta rubra, the only species of its genus, 
found In tropical Asia and Africa. It is a much-branched 
twining herb, trained over trellises and native houses 
in India, succulent, and used aa a pot-herb. Stinking 
nightshade. Same as henbane. Three-leafed night- 
shade, a plant of the genus Trillium. 
night-shirt (nit'shert), . A plain loose shirt 
for sleeping in. 
night-shoot (nit'shOt), n. A place for casting 
night-soil. 
night-side (nit'sid), . The side or aspect pre- 
sented by night; the dark, mysterious, omi- 
nous, or gloomy side. 
night-sight (nit'sit), n. Same as day-blindness. 
night-singer (nit'sing'er), n. A bird that sings 
by night, as the nightingale ; specifically, in 
Ireland, the sedge-warbler, Acrocephaitis jthrag- 
mitin, sometimes called the Irish nightingale. 
night-snapt (nit'snap), . A night-thief. 
Dulte. What U 't you look for, sir? have you lost any thing? 
John. Only my hat 1' the scuffle; sure, these fellows 
Were night-snapi. Fletcher, The Chances, II. 1. 
night-soil (nit'soil), . The contents of privies, 
etc. (generally removed in the night), employ- 
ed as a manure. 
night-sparrow (nit'spar'6), . The chip-bird, 
which often trills a few notes at intervals dur- 
ing the night. [Bare.] 
And the niifht-fparrotc trills her song 
All night, with none to hear. 
Bryant, The Hunter's Serenade. 
night-spell (mt'spel), . [MK. 
niijlit + >///.] A night-chum ; ach'annorspell 
against accMents at night; a charm against the 
niirhtmare. 
night-warbling 
Ther-wtlh the nyylittjxl seyde lie iiinMirlghten, 
On foure halves of the hou alioutr. 
And on the thr-hfold of the dore wlth-uutc. 
Chawrr, Miller's Tale (ed. (iilman, 1. 84SO of C. T.). 
Spell Is a klnde of verse or cbanne that In elder tymes 
they used often to say over everything that they would 
have preserved, u the NigUipel for theeves. and the 
wood-spell Spenitr, Shcp. CaL, Much (OIoMe). 
night-steed (uit'sted), . One of the horses rep- 
resented as harnessed to the chariot of Night. 
The yellow-skirted Fayes 
Fly after the night iteedt, leaving their moon-lov'd maze. 
Milton, Nativity, L 284. 
night-StOOl (nit'stol), H. [= (i. ,i--litxlHhl = 
Sw. iiiitixlol = Dan. HdtHbil; as night + /o/.] 
A commode or close-stool for use at night, as 
in a bedroom. 
night-swallow (nit'swol'6), . The night-iar 
or goatsucker, CapHwuilfftUnropaiti: so called 
from its nocturnal habits and its mode of flight 
in catching insects on the wing, 
night-sweat (nit'swet), . Profnse sweating 
at night, as in phthisis. 
night-taper (nit'ta'per), n. A taper made to 
burn slowly, for use as a night-light. 
The honey-bags steal from the humble-bees, 
And for night-taper* crop their waxen thighs 
And light them at the flery glow-worm's eyes. 
Shalt., M. N. D., llL 1. 17*. 
night-terrors (nit'ter'orz), n. pi. Sudden and 
incomplete waking from sleep (on the part of 
young children) in a state of confusion and 
terror. 
night-time (nit'tim), . [= Icel. nattartimi, 
iKFtrtimi; as night + time.'] The period of the 
night. 
night-tradert (iilt'tra'der), . A prostitute. 
All kinds of females, from the night-trader, in the street. 
Matringer, The Picture, L 2. 
night-tripping(nit'trip'ing), . Tripping about- 
in the night. 
O that It could be proved 
That some night-tripping fairy had exchanged 
In cradle-clothes our children where they lay '. 
Shak., 1 Hen. IV., i. 1. 87. 
night-waket (nit'wak), . [< ME. nighte irtike, 
< AS. uihtiraeu (= D. naehttcaat, nachtirake = 
OHG. Hahttcaka = Icel. ndttcaka; cf. D. nacht- 
wacht = MLG. nachtwacht = MHG. nahticahte, 
G. nachtwacht = Sw. nattvakt = Dan. natieragt), 
< niht, night, + iracw, wake, watch: see night 
and Kakef, n. Cf. night-watch.'] A night-watch. 
night-waker (nit'wa'ker), . [< ME. nightc- 
iniker; < night + irakcr."] A night-watcher, 
night-waking (nit'wa'king), a. Watching in 
the night. 
Yet, foul night-leaking cat, he doth but dally. 
While in his hold-fast foot the weak mouse panteth. 
Shirk , Lucrece, 1. .".:.). 
night-walk (nit'wak), M. A walk in the even- 
ing or night. 
If In his night-walk he met with irregular scholars . . . 
he did usually take their names, and a promise to appear 
before him, unsent for, next morning. 
/. Walton, Life of Sanderson. 
night-walker (nit'wa'ker), n. 1. One who 
walks in his sleep; a somnambulist. 2. One 
who roves about in the night for evil purposes; 
a nocturnal vagrant. 
Men that hunt so be either Ignorant persones, preule 
stealers, or night tralken. 
Arrhaiii. The Scholemaster, p. W. 
Sight-uxilkcri are such pci sons as sleep by day and walk 
by night, being oftentimes pilferers or disturbers of the 
peace. Jamb, Law Dictionary. (Latham.) 
3. A prostitute who walks the streets at night, 
night-walking (nit'wa'king), . 1. Walking 
in one's sleep; somnambulism. 2. A roving 
in the streets at night with evil designs, 
night-walking (nirwa'king),a. Walking about 
at night. 
Kight-mOcing heralds. Shak., Rich. III., 1. 1. 72. 
They shall not need hereafter in old Cloaks, and fslse 
Beards, to stand to the courtesy of a night-waiting cud- 
geller for eavesdropping. 
Milton, On Def. of Humb. Kemonst. 
night-wanderer (nit'won'der-er), . One who 
wanders by night ; a nocturnal traveler. 
Or stonlsh'd as night-trandertn often are, 
Their light blown out In some mistrustful wood. 
Shak., Venus and Adonis, L 82S. 
night-wandering (nit'won'der-ing), a. Wan- 
dering or roaming by night. 
Xight-tamderiny weasels shriek to see him there ; 
They fright him, yet he still puisnes his fear. 
Shak., Lucrece, 1. 307. 
night-warbling (nit' war'bling), a. Singing in 
the night. 
>ilence yields 
To the niiM-tnrtlina bird. 
Milton. P. L., T. 40. 
