mitad de la noche
/mitad de la not͡ʃe/from spelling rules
The phrase "middle of the night" in Spanish is mitad de la noche.
mitad de la noche refers to the period of time when most people are asleep, typically between midnight and dawn.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of mitad (middle/half), de (of), la (the) and noche (night).
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Chile, de madrugada is used to refer to the middle of the night.
How does it change in a sentence?
When used to mean 'during' the middle of the night, the preposition en is commonly used before the phrase.
How do you pronounce it?
/mitad de la notʃe/
Did you know?
- The term madrugada comes from the verb madrugar, which means 'to wake up very early'. This shifts the focus from the time of night to the act of waking up.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, the madrugada is not just a time of sleep but a social period. In some regions, it is common to have dinner or social gatherings that last well into the madrugada.
- Depending on the country, the transition from noche to madrugada happens at different times. Some people consider it noche until they go to sleep and madrugada the moment they wake up before dawn.
Examples in context
- Le oyó llorar en mitad de la noche.She heard him cry in the middle of the night.This sentence is useful for showing how to use mitad de la noche to describe hearing someone cry during that time.Tatoeba #892130 by Shishir, translation #887193 by CK
- Tom se despertó a la mitad de la noche.Tom woke up in the middle of the night.This sentence is useful for describing waking up mitad de la noche.Tatoeba #1458403 by marcelostockle, translation #1092252 by CK
- El bebé despertó en la mitad de la noche.The baby woke up in the middle of the night.Tatoeba #1210084 by marcelostockle, translation #45834 by CK
- 5 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Elena and Daniel are talking about a strange noise they heard.
- ElenaMe desperté en mitad de la noche por un ruido.I woke up in the middle of the night because of a noise.
- DanielYo no escuché nada, Elena.I didn't hear anything, Elena.
- ElenaParecía que alguien estaba en el jardín.It seemed like someone was in the garden.
- DanielQuizás fue solo el viento en mitad de la noche.Maybe it was just the wind in the middle of the night.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
