buenas noches
/ˌbwenas ˈnot͡ʃes/
In Spanish, good night is buenas noches.
buenas noches can mean both "good night" and "good evening". Unlike English, which distinguishes between 'good evening' (a greeting) and 'good night' (a farewell), 'buenas noches' is used for both greeting someone and saying goodbye after dark.
Meaning: a farewell (phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally translates to "good nights" because both buenas and noches are in their plural forms.
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective buenas must agree in gender and number with the feminine plural noun noches.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˌbwenas ˈnotʃes/
Did you know?
- While buenas noches is the standard, in some Latin American countries it is common to shorten the greeting to just buenas when entering a shop or meeting a group of people.
- The word noches comes from the Latin 'nox', which is also the root of the English word 'nocturnal'.
- The plural form buenas noches follows a pattern seen in other greetings like buenos días, where the plural is used to wish a 'good' series of moments throughout the period.
Examples in context
- Di buenas noches, Tom.Say good night, Tom.Tatoeba #3603143 by ficion, translation #3371181 by CK
- Le di las buenas noches.I wished him a good night.Tatoeba #1355207 by marcelostockle, translation #457127 by FeuDRenais
- Le dije "buenas noches".I told him "good night".Tatoeba #8574799 by adaycito, translation #13101158 by frpzzd
- Mom, buenas noches. Descansa y sueña con los angelitos.Mom, good night. Rest and dream with the little angels.
- ¡Buenas noches a todos! Que tengan dulces sueños.Good night everyone! Sweet dreams to all.
- Hasta mañana, amiga. Descansa bien y nos vemos pronto.Until tomorrow, friend. Rest well and see you soon.
- Que descanses, cariño. Te quiero mucho.Rest well, darling. I love you very much.
- 39 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Mateo and Lucía are leaving a dinner party.
- MateoMuchas gracias por la cena, buenas noches.Thank you very much for the dinner, good night.
- LucíaDe nada, Mateo. Buenas noches a ti también.You're welcome, Mateo. Good night to you too.
- MateoHasta mañana, Lucía.See you tomorrow, Lucía.
- LucíaHasta mañana.See you tomorrow.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “good night” translations and entries buenas noches, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
