all-nighter

English

Alternative forms

• allnighter, all nighter

Etymology

From all-night +‎ -er = all- +‎ night +‎ -er.

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Noun

all-nighter (plural all-nighters)

1. Something that lasts throughout the whole night.

   That party was an all-nighter.

   1. (specifically) An instance of studying or working throughout the night without sleep.
2. (UK, crime, slang) A session with a prostitute covering the entire night.
3. (UK, crime, slang) A client of a prostitute who has paid for the entire night.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:prostitute's client

4. (US, crime, slang) A criminal or other person kept in jail over night.

Derived terms

• pull an all-nighter

See also

• vigil

Further reading

• Eric Partridge (2007) “all-nighter”, in Tom Dalzell and Terry Victor, editors, The Concise New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English, Abingdon, Oxon., New York, N.Y.: Routledge, →ISBN, page 9.