curfew

noun

cur·​few ˈkər-(ˌ)fyü How to pronounce curfew (audio)
plural curfews
1
: the sounding of a bell at evening
2
a
: a regulation enjoining the withdrawal of usually specified persons (such as juveniles or military personnel) from the streets or the closing of business establishments or places of assembly at a stated hour
The city ordered a curfew to prevent further rioting.
b
: a requirement that someone (typically a child) be home by a particular time
Instead, [parents] should make a point of enforcing curfews and standards of behavior that reflect their family's values …Pam Carroll
c
: a signal to announce the beginning of a curfew
d
: the hour at which a curfew becomes effective
Austerity has come to Rome, with a midnight curfew, car-less Sundays …Women's Wear Daily
She began to cry because it was past curfew and she was certain her momma would kill her when she got home.Susan Soo-Hyun Chung
e
: the period during which a curfew is in effect

Did you know?

What is the origin of curfew?

Curfews set by parents (and kept or broken by their offspring) do not echo the origins of the word curfew in any discernable way—if they did, they’d need to at least hint at the sound of a bell. When curfew was first used in the 14th century, it referred to the sounding of a bell at evening to alert people that they should cover their hearth fires for the night—a necessary warning, as many European houses in the Middle Ages were close enough to each other that fires could spread easily from one to the next. The word came to English from Anglo-French, in which the signal was called coverfeu, a compound of covrir, meaning “to cover,” and feu, “fire.” Even when hearth fires were no longer regulated, many towns had other rules that called for ringing an evening bell, including one that required people to be off the streets by a given time, a development that granted curfew permission to go out and about with a broader meaning.

Examples of curfew in a Sentence

The teens were stopped by police for violating the curfew. The city ordered a curfew soon after the rioting started. The town was placed under curfew. No one is allowed on the streets during the curfew. He has a 10 o'clock curfew.
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.
More than 200 people were arrested the night before for violating the nighttime curfew, authorities reported. Nayara Batschke and Matias Basualdo , arkansasonline.com, 27 Feb. 2025 After a period in a refugee camp, with Israeli soldiers deeming land deeds invalid, the narrative jumps to 1978, to a territory populated by Palestinians crammed in modest quarters, without citrus trees and with regular curfews. Tomris Laffly, Variety, 26 Jan. 2025 The protests lasted for more than a week and at one point prompted the city to institute, then revoke, a night curfew in an attempt to quell unrest. Robert Salonga, The Mercury News, 24 Jan. 2025 The storm was so severe in some areas that a curfew was installed. Kristen Waggoner, Newsweek, 21 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for curfew

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French coverfeu, signal given to bank the hearth fire, curfew, from coverir to cover + fu, feu fire, from Latin focus hearth

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of curfew was in the 14th century

Browse Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Curfew.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/curfew. Accessed 15 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

curfew

noun
cur·​few ˈkər-ˌfyü How to pronounce curfew (audio)
1
: an order or law requiring certain or all people to be off the streets at a stated time
2
: a signal (as the ringing of a bell) formerly given to announce the beginning of a curfew
3
: the time when a curfew is sounded
Etymology

Middle English curfew "an order to be off the streets at a certain time," from early French coverfeu "signal to cover a hearth fire, curfew," from covrir "to cover" and feu "fire"

Word Origin
During the Middle Ages, houses in European towns were often made of wood, and they were built very close together. A fire burning out of control could quickly spread from house to house. To prevent this disaster, people were required to put out or cover their hearth fires by a certain time in the evening. A bell was rung as a signal when the time had come. In early French this signal was called coverfeu, a compound of covrir, meaning "to cover," and feu, "fire." Even when hearth fires were no longer regulated, many towns had other rules that called for the ringing of an evening bell, and this signal was still called coverfeu. A common coverfeu regulation required that certain people be off the streets by a given time. This is the meaning taken when the word coverfeu was borrowed from early French into Middle English as curfew.

More from Merriam-Webster on curfew

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!