gute Nacht
/ˌɡutə ˈnaxt/
The German phrase for "good night" is gute Nacht.
gute Nacht is the standard way to say "good night" in German. It is a farewell phrase used when leaving or going to sleep.
Meaning: a farewell (phrase)
Which one should you use?
While gute Nacht is a farewell used when leaving or going to sleep, Guten Abend means "good evening" and is used as a greeting when arriving or meeting someone in the evening.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Bavarian, you might hear the expression Gute Nacht, Pfüati, und schlof guet, which means "Good night, goodbye and sleep well."
How does it change in a sentence?
In the phrase gute Nacht, the adjective gut takes the -e ending to agree with the feminine noun Nacht.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˌɡutə ˈnaxt/
When do people say it?
It is common to use the phrase Schlaf gut! (Sleep well!) alongside gute Nacht.
Did you know?
- The Bavarian variation Pfüati used alongside gute Nacht is a contraction of Behüte dich Gott, meaning 'May God protect you'.
- While gute Nacht is a farewell, Germans use the word Nacht in the phrase nachtruhe to describe the legal right to quiet hours in residential areas.
- The phrase gute Nacht is often accompanied by the gesture of a kiss on the cheek or forehead when said to children or partners.
Examples in context
- Gute Nacht! Schlaf gut!Good night, sleep tight.This example shows how to use gute Nacht with a wish for sleep.Tatoeba #5320092 by Pfirsichbaeumchen, translation #64834 by shekitten
- Gute Nacht! Bis morgen!Good night and see you tomorrow.This example shows how to use gute Nacht when seeing someone the next day.Tatoeba #12561588 by Waldelfe, translation #9921723 by lucasmg123
- Ich sagte ihm gute Nacht.I wished him a good night.This example shows how to use gute Nacht when wishing someone a good night in a sentence.Tatoeba #10078824 by wolfgangth, translation #457127 by FeuDRenais
- 50 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Sarah and Maximilian are ending a phone call late at night.
- SarahIch gehe jetzt ins Bett.I am going to bed now.
- MaximilianAlles klar, gute Nacht, Sarah!All right, good night, Sarah!
- SarahGute Nacht, Maximilian.Good night, Maximilian.
- MaximilianSchlaf schön!Sleep well!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “good night” translations and entries gute Nacht, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
