burn the midnight oil

Cultural  

1. To stay awake late at night to work or study: “Jill has been burning the midnight oil lately; I guess she has a big exam coming up.”

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burn the midnight oil Idioms  

1. Stay up late working or studying, as in The semester is almost over and we're all burning the midnight oil before exams. This expression alludes to the oil in oil lamps. [Early 1600s]

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Example Sentences

Yet those who do choose to burn the midnight oil could end up paying a heavy price.

From BBC • Feb. 8, 2026

Yes, Swift chose to burn the midnight oil to spill her album's secrets, night after night, in keeping with its theme — but fans didn't have to choose to stay up.

From Salon • Feb. 2, 2023

Those familiar with Duterte say his nocturnal schedule forces those around him — from staff to the press corps — to burn the midnight oil.

From Washington Post • Aug. 26, 2021

Adjusting to the new regime requires radical steps, testing employers and workers in a nation where many burn the midnight oil.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 1, 2018

For I burn the midnight oil, and the early blackbird—the first of our choir to awake—has often saluted me on my way home.

From Leaves in the Wind by Gardiner, A. G. (Alfred George)