Meaning & use
past your bedtime
Last updated
Meanings
phrasefixed phrase
Later than the usual time when you (or someone else) should go to bed.
Grammar: The possessive changes with the person: past my bedtime, past his bedtime, past their bedtime.
Patterns
- be past your bedtime
- stay up past your bedtime
- it is past your bedtime
Come on, it's past your bedtime — brush your teeth.
The children were still watching TV, long past their bedtime.
Don't let him have more cake; it's already past his bedtime.
phrasefixed phraseinformal
Too late at night for someone, especially a child, to still be awake.
Grammar: Often used as a gentle scolding or a reason to send someone to bed.
Patterns
- get past your bedtime
- be way past your bedtime
You're way past your bedtime, young lady.
We got past our bedtime talking on the phone.
Common combinations
- it's past your bedtime
- It's past your bedtime, so turn off the game.
- stay up past your bedtime
- She stayed up past her bedtime to finish the book.
- way past your bedtime
- It's way past your bedtime — go to sleep.
- long past your bedtime
- He came home long past his bedtime.
Synonyms and how they differ
- up late
- Describes being awake late in a neutral way; 'past your bedtime' adds the idea that this is later than you should be.
Opposites
Word family
- bedtime noun
- The usual time when you go to bed.
Commonly confused: past your bedtime or passed your bedtime?
past your bedtime vs passed your bedtime
'Past' means later than a time; 'passed' is the past tense of the verb 'pass' and would not fit here.
Practice
Which sentence uses the phrase correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Past' means later than a point in time, and the possessive 'their' agrees with 'the kids'. 'Passed' is a verb form and does not mean 'later than'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “past your bedtime”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.