Evoking the atmosphere of the setting in your story, especially at night, requires the use of descriptive words so you can bring your readers to another world.
Use the following words to describe night to help you write an exciting story.
Words to describe night in a metropolitan city
There is always a beehive of activity in cities at daytime and nighttime. Use the following words to describe the night in a city that never sleeps.
01Big
E.g. “Merrymaking is a routine activity in Rio, especially when the city holds concerts and shows. It is always a big night full of dances and singing.”
Big nights are important and full of activities. People end up staying awake until the early hours of the morning on such nights.
Photo by Dexter Armiza under Pexels License
02Hell
E.g. “Partying all day long in Kansas is what the local people do regularly. I could not imagine the hell of a night they would have, with nasty hangovers.”
“Hell nights” have many activities that are tiring or lead people to trouble. People end up lacking sleep.
03Party
E.g. “You won’t be able to resist this party night because the DJ will be mashing up the place with his awesome playlist.”
People like enjoying themselves during party nights. At times it gets so far that they take it until morning.
E.g. “Have you ever wondered why Friday and Saturday nights glow so bright? I guess because they are date nights.”
Date nights are always bright throughout because of the love and affection felt.
05Busy
E.g. “Despite office hours being over, I do not think I can finish this without taking overtime. It is going to be a busy night.”
There are always so many tasks to handle on busy nights that you can lose track of time.
Photo by Denys Nevozhai on Unsplash
06Restless
E.g. “This is the hundredth time Michael has had to go over to his neighbor to warn him about the loud music. I feel sad that he is having a restless night.”
During restless nights, people are unable to relax because they can’t help moving more than usual.
Words to describe night in the countryside, farm, or mountain
The countryside, farm, and mountains have different nights. Use these words to describe the smell and serenity of the nights.
07Peaceful
E.g. “Calm and peaceful nights are all I have been dreaming of, away from the rancid smell of the city.”
There are no disturbances during peaceful nights. You can hear the sound of nature during these nights.
Photo by Guzman Barquin on unsplash
08Rugged
E.g. “Never have I ever seen the base of a mountain lacking ragged nights in the years I have been exploring.”
You see rugged nights near mountains where there is a view of uneven dark surfaces.
09Placid
E.g. “Her berry smell left me gasping for more amid the placid night as she lay on my chest. Peace was all that reigned.”
Placid nights have a sense of tranquility in them that makes you calm and relaxed.
10Cold
E.g. “The smoky smell of coffee cooking in the kitchen is all I want during these cold nights in the mountains.”
Cold nights have low temperatures and are mostly experienced during winter when it snows.
Photo by Peter Fitzpatrick on unsplash
11Savage
E.g. “The night was savage; full of horses leaving the stable, the smell of manure in the air, and a great storm ravaging the air.”
Savage nights are dramatic because of bad weather, awful smells in the air, or chaos.
12Cadaverine
E.g. “The feast happened during a cadaverine night that made people go home without having had a taste of roasted meat.”
Cadaverine nights are full of the smell of rotten flesh. They are most likely to happen in farming areas.
The following examples of words help you explain how you felt when someone or something was absent, making you have a lonely night.
13Destitute
E.g. “It was during those destitute nights that I crawled the streets begging for food and water to quench my thirst.”
During destitute nights, you feel weak because you cannot provide essentials for yourself.
14Silent
E.g. “The sense of loneliness was in the air this silent night. It made me miss the smell of burning bacon that my mom always cooked for supper.”
Nights are silent when you feel alone.
Photo by Alan Chen on unsplash
15Friendless
E.g. “It has been two months now that I have survived these friendless nights. I cannot do it anymore, so I am leaving for New York tomorrow.”
Friendless nights lack the presence or the feeling of your friends’ energy, making you lonely.
Photo by cottonbro under pexels license
For midnight
A few hours after sunset, midnight strikes. You may describe the night at this time using the following words.
16Witching hour
E.g. “The creepiness of Halloween is terrifying at the witching hour, especially when you walk alone in the streets.”
The witching hour is often associated with supernatural events that occur at midnight.
Photo by Alex Fu under pexels license
17Zero hours
E.g. “She thought that writing was a piece of cake, until she had to begin her assignment due in the morning at zero hours. She slept the next day in class.”
The clock hits zero hours in the night at midnight, hence the name. It is the start of the next day.
18Wee hours
E.g. “The patient succumbed in the wee hours of the night. They had to run an autopsy to determine the cause of death.”
Wee hours of the day is the time immediately after midnight, maybe a few seconds or minutes after.
E.g. “It took the officers two weeks to arrest the perpetrators. They were lucky to do it in the small hours of Sunday night.”
The small hours are the early hours in the morning that come immediately after midnight.
20Dead of night
E.g. “He drove past my block speeding, at the dead of night, while trying to escape the traffic officers.”
Dead of night is when things are silent in the middle of the night. There are no signs of life.
Photo by Casey Horner on unsplash
Words to describe night in a city during a lockdown
Life during lockdowns is less active, especially at night. You may use the following words to describe how they were for you.
21Caged
E.g. “It was so traumatizing at the beginning of those caged nights, but I came around.”
Caged nights are those where you feel you are under confinement. You cannot party or live freely like before.
Photo bySander de Vos on unsplash
22Solitary
E.g. “I adopted the habit of watching series on Netflix on those solitary nights that I could not go out and watch movies.”
During solitary nights you are often alone because people are at their own places.
Conclusion
Writing a captivating story requires you to go out of your way and enhance it using the best descriptive words. They come in varieties based on the type of storyline.
Use the above examples of words to describe the night to make your readers love and engage in your story.
