Meaning & use
night and day difference
Last updated
UK/ˌnaɪt ən ˈdeɪ ˈdɪfrəns/
US/ˌnaɪt ən ˈdeɪ ˈdɪfrəns/
Meaning
phraseidiom
A very big difference between two things or situations.
Grammar: Countable; usually used with 'a' or 'the': a night and day difference.
Patterns
- a night and day difference between something and something
- there is a night and day difference in something
- like night and day
There is a night and day difference between the old phone and the new one.
After the repairs, the room showed a night and day difference.
The two sisters are like night and day.
Common combinations
- a night and day difference
- The weather made a night and day difference to our picnic.
- see a night and day difference
- You can see a night and day difference in her attitude.
- like night and day
- Their cooking styles are like night and day.
Synonyms and how they differ
- world of difference
- Also means a big difference, but it is slightly less extreme and more common in everyday speech.
- huge difference
- A plain, neutral way to say the same thing; 'night and day' is more colorful and emphatic.
Practice
Choose the sentence that uses the phrase correctly.
Choose one answer.
'A night and day difference' is the correct singular countable form. 'The' is wrong because the phrase is not specific, and 'night and day differences' is not the fixed phrase.
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