bonne nuit
/bɔn nɥi/
The English phrase "good night" is translated into French as bonne nuit.
bonne nuit is used as a farewell specifically when someone is actually going to sleep or when it is the very end of the night.
Meaning: a farewell (phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the feminine adjective bonne (good) and the feminine noun nuit (night).
Which one should you use?
Use bonne nuit only when someone is actually going to sleep or it is the very end of the night. Do not use it as a general greeting like "good evening". Instead, use bonsoir to say hello or goodbye during the evening.
How do you pronounce it?
/bɔn nɥi/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use the masculine bon instead of the feminine bonne to match the feminine noun nuit.
Did you know?
- A French speaker might say fais de beaux rêves after bonne nuit. This translates to 'make beautiful dreams' rather than the English 'sweet dreams'.
- The French word nuit evolved from the Latin word nox. This Latin root is also the source of English words like 'nocturnal' and 'equinox'.
- In some French-speaking regions, particularly in parts of Africa, bonne nuit might be used more broadly as a standard nighttime farewell than in strict Parisian French.
Examples in context
- Bonne nuit à tous !Good night, everyone!Tatoeba #1226174 by sacredceltic, translation #1082672 by MUIRIEL
- J'ai dit bonne nuit.I said good night.Tatoeba #7284178 by Rockaround, translation #2405824 by CK
- Bonne nuit, ma chère.Good night, my love.Tatoeba #5859110 by dufromage, translation #5857232 by OsoHombre
- 45 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nathan and Léa are leaving a dinner party.
- NathanBonne nuit, Léa.Good night, Léa.
- LéaBonne nuit, Nathan. À demain !Good night, Nathan. See you tomorrow!
- NathanÀ demain.See you tomorrow.
- LéaSalut !Bye!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “good night” translations and entries bonne nuit, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
