moonless

IPA/ˈmuːnləs/
IPA/ˈmuːnləs/

moonless — adjective

  • moonlesspositive
  • more moonlesscomparative
  • most moonlesssuperlative

1. A moonless night or sky has no visible moon, so the darkness is deeper than usua

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

A moonless night or sky has no visible moon, so the darkness is deeper than usual.

Example

On a moonless night, the stars above the desert seemed closer and brighter than ever.

collocation: on a moonless night

Hana could barely see the path ahead under the moonless sky in the forest.

collocation: under a moonless sky

Common collocations
  • moonless night
  • moonless sky
  • moonless evening
  • moonless landscape
Synonyms
  • dark

    general term for absence of light; less specific than moonless

  • starry

    overlapping — moonless nights often reveal many stars

  • pitch-black

    emphasises complete darkness, often because of no moonlight

Antonyms
  • moonlit

    direct opposite: a scene lit by the moon

Usage Note

Typically placed before nouns such as night, sky, or evening. Less often used after a linking verb (e.g. 'The sky was moonless').

Common Mistakes

The moonless night was lit by a full moon.
The moonless night was lit only by stars.
moonless means the moon is not visible, so you cannot mention moonlight or a visible moon in the same scene.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Dark is the most general word for the absence of light; moonless is more specific, naming the cause. A dark room has nothing to do with the moon. Starry describes a sky full of visible stars — something that often happens on a moonless night because no moonlight drowns out fainter stars. Pitch-black emphasises total darkness and pairs naturally with moonless: a moonless night in the countryside can be pitch-black. Moonlit is the direct opposite, describing a scene that is visibly brightened by moonlight. Use moonless when you want to highlight what is missing (the moon itself) rather than just saying how dark the scene is. For example: 'The garden was dark' (neutral observation) vs. 'The garden was moonless' (the cause is the moon's absence) vs. 'The garden was moonlit' (the opposite situation).

dark ↗starry ↗pitch-blackmoonlit ↗

Common collocations

Adverbs

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

moonless is formed from moon (from Old English mōna) and the suffix -less (from Old English -lēas, meaning 'without' or 'free of'). The suffix has been used since Old English times to create adjectives that describe the absence of something. Moonless has appeared in English writing since at least the 1500s, almost always describing a night or sky without moonlight.