nächtlichen

Nächtlichen is an inflected form of the German adjective nächtlich, meaning “of the night” or “nocturnal.” It is used to describe things that occur at night or relate to the nighttime. As with other German adjectives, nächtlich is declined to agree with the gender, number, and case of the noun it modifies.

In standard German, the ending of nächtlich changes according to the article and the case. For example, in the common dative singular masculine form it appears as nächtlichen, as in dem nächtlichen Lärm. In the plural after a definite article, as in die nächtlichen Geräusche, the ending is -en. In the nominative masculine singular with der, the form is nächtlicher or nächtliche depending on the noun and case, while in several other case arrangements the -en ending is used (demeaning to forms like nächtlichen Lärm, nächtlichen Stunden). The possessive or indefinite forms follow the same declension rules as other adjectives.

Examples illustrate typical usage: Der nächtliche Lärm stört die Nachbarn. Die nächtlichen Geräusche weckten die Bewohner. Dem nächtlichen Lärm kann man kaum entkommen. Nächtlich is also used in literary or formal contexts to evoke atmosphere or describe activities that occur after dusk; in everyday language, adverbs like nachts often serve a similar function.

Etymologically, nächtlich derives from Nacht (night) with the suffix -lich, a common formation for adjectives in German. It remains a standard, though somewhat more formal or literary, descriptor for nighttime phenomena.