small hours

plural noun

: the early morning hours

Examples of small hours in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Schools and workplaces open at night, construction sites buzz in the small hours under massive floodlights, and outdoor recreation takes place in the twilights of dawn and dusk. — Big Think, 31 Mar. 2026 The airy confines of the stately home where Allied commanders are gathered provide both the grandeur and the contrast to the minutiae inked out on vast maps in the small hours of the night. — Daniel Jonah Wolpert, NPR, 29 May 2026 House Republicans revolted twice in the small hours of Friday morning, ultimately sinking the bill. — Dell Cameron, Wired News, 17 Apr. 2026 Tough Love lives in the latter mode, in the small hours of a night that hasn’t quite dissolved into morning, when life seems perilously short, breathtakingly urgent, and incredibly endless all at once. — Reed Jackson, SPIN, 22 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for small hours

Word History

First Known Use

1717, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of small hours was in 1717

Rhymes for small hours

See All Rhymes for small hours

Browse Nearby Words

Small Horde
small hours
smalling
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Small hours.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/small%20hours. Accessed 10 Jul. 2026.

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