noon

noun

ˈnün 

1

: midday

specifically : 12 o'clock at midday

2

archaic : midnight

—used chiefly in the phrase noon of night

3

: the highest point

Synonyms

• high noon
• lunch time
• midday
• noonday
• noontide
• noontime

Examples of noon in a Sentence

The party will take place from noon to 4 p.m.

He showed up at precisely 12 noon.

Recent Examples on the Web

An open house is scheduled for March 16, noon to 3 p.m. Private showings of the home are also underway. —Karen A. Avitabile, Hartford Courant, 16 Mar. 2025

The Long Island native was released from jail at noon later that day. —Diane J. Cho, People.com, 15 Mar. 2025

Gladys could have traveled faster alone, but her companions invited her to stay with them until noon and join them for a venison dinner. —Ben East, Outdoor Life, 14 Mar. 2025

That could begin Friday, with the National Weather Service predicting a chance of rain and snow showers between noon and 3 p.m., with a chance of rain showers after 3 p.m. —Ashley Fredde, Idaho Statesman, 14 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English nōn ninth hour from sunrise, from Latin nona, from feminine of nonus ninth; akin to Latin novem nine — more at nine

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing noon

• high noon
• morning, noon, and night
• pre-noon

Rhymes for noon

• boon
• brune
• coon
• croon
• dune
• goon
• hewn
• hoon
• june
• loon
• moon
• poon

Kids Definition

noon

noun

ˈnün 

: the middle of the day : 12 o'clock in the daytime

noon adjective

Etymology

Old English nōn "ninth hour from sunrise," derived from Latin nona, a feminine form of nonus "ninth," from novem "nine"

Word Origin

Noon has not always meant "12 o'clock in the daytime." In the ancient Roman way of keeping track of time, the hours of the day were counted from sunrise to sunset. The ninth hour of their day (about 3 p.m. nowadays) was called nona, Latin for "ninth." In the early period of English, the word was borrowed as nōn, also referring to the ninth hour after sunrise. By the 14th century, however, the word came to be used for midday, 12 o'clock, as we use it today.