午夜
wǔyè
Midnight in Chinese is expressed as 午夜 (wǔyè). Wiktionary also lists 半夜 (bànyè) and 子夜 (zǐyè).
Meaning: 12 o'clock at night exactly (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 午夜 | wǔyè |
| 半夜 | bànyè |
| 子夜 | zǐyè |
午夜 is the most standard and neutral way to specify the exact time of 12:00 AM in modern Mandarin.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 午夜 is composed of 午, meaning noon or midday and 夜, meaning night, literally meaning 'mid-night'.
Which one should you use?
While 午夜 refers specifically to the stroke of midnight, 半夜 is a more colloquial term used to refer generally to the middle of the night or late-night hours.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
半夜 is colloquial and 子夜 is a formal or literary term often found in classical literature or poetic contexts.
How do you pronounce it?
wǔyè
Did you know?
- While 午夜 literally translates to 'noon-night', it reflects a cosmic symmetry where 午 (noon) is the peak of Yang energy and 子 (midnight) is the peak of Yin energy.
- In the traditional twelve-branch time system used in ancient China, the hour of midnight is called 子时 (zǐshí), named after the zodiac animal, the rat.
- Ancient China divided the night into five 'watches' (更), meaning that 半夜 corresponds to the transition between the second and third watch.
Examples in context
- 湯姆午夜才到家。Tom got home at midnight.This sentence uses 午夜 to indicate the time Tom arrived home.Tatoeba #13869029 by LeviHighway, translation #6439898 by CK
- 這裡已經是午夜了。It's almost midnight here.This sentence uses 午夜 to indicate the current time.Tatoeba #6482312 by verdastelo9604, translation #792415 by CK
- 我们在午夜之后起床。We got up after midnight.This sentence uses 午夜 to indicate the time after which someone woke up.Tatoeba #2188399 by sadhen, translation #663867 by bluepie88
- 昨晚我很晚才回家，已经半夜了。I didn't get home until very late last night, it was already midnight.
- 7 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Zhiqiang and Yuting are discussing a movie schedule.
- 志强 Zhiqiang电影在午夜开始播放。Diànyǐng zài wǔyè kāishǐ bōfàng.The movie starts playing at midnight.
- 雨婷 Yuting那太晚了，我不能去。Nà tài wǎn le, wǒ bùnéng qù.That is too late, I cannot go.
- 志强 Zhiqiang你确定午夜没问题吗？Nǐ quèdìng wǔyè méi wèntí ma?Are you sure midnight is a problem?
- 雨婷 Yuting是的，志强，我必须早睡。Shì de, Zhìqiáng, wǒ bìxū zǎo shuì.Yes, Zhiqiang, I must go to sleep early.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “midnight” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
