twilight

noun

twi·​light ˈtwī-ˌlīt 

often attributive

1

: the light from the sky between full night and sunrise or between sunset and full night produced by diffusion of sunlight through the atmosphere and its dust

also : a time of twilight

2

a

: an intermediate state that is not clearly defined

lived in the twilight of neutrality

—Newsweek

b

: a period of decline

Synonyms

• black
• blackness
• candlelight
• dark
• darkness
• dusk
• gloaming
• gloom
• murk
• night
• semidarkness
• shade
• shadows
• umbra

Examples of twilight in a Sentence

The sun set and twilight fell.

stumbled around the twilight of the shuttered room, unable to see where she was going

Recent Examples on the Web

Rodgers, at the age of 40 and looking every bit like it this season, is clearly in the twilight of his career. —Jesse Reed, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024

Instead, these locations experience polar twilight as their brightest periods during this season, which replaces their daylight. —Cecilia Blomdahl, Smithsonian Magazine, 17 Oct. 2024

Among the other notable projects that earned the right to pitch at IDFA Forum is one that draws on archive from the twilight of the Soviet Union. —Matthew Carey, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2024

The album amalgamates this twilight mood into a cohesive, moody, sometimes melancholic, often achingly pretty 34 minutes of music. —Katie Bain, Billboard, 1 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing twilight

• twilight glow
• twilight world
• twilight zone

Kids Definition

twilight

noun

twi·​light ˈtwī-ˌlīt 

: the period or the light from the sky between full night and sunrise or between sunset and full night