夜勤（やきん、yakin）
- night shift

The Japanese word 夜勤 (やきん, yakin) refers to "night shift," "night duty," or "working at night." It describes the act of working during the nighttime hours, typically when most people are sleeping. The specific hours covered by a 夜勤 can vary depending on the workplace, but it generally involves work that begins in the evening and continues through the night, ending in the early morning.

⚫︎夜勤のアルバイトをしています。 Translation: I'm working a night shift part-time job. ⚫︎看護師の夜勤は大変です。 Translation: Night duty for nurses is tough. ⚫︎彼は毎週金曜日に夜勤がある。 Translation: He has a night shift every Friday.

You can use 夜勤 in various contexts related to employment, work schedules, and activities conducted during the night. It's suitable for discussing jobs, shifts, or responsibilities that take place overnight. You would use 夜勤 when you want to specify a work arrangement that occurs at night, in contrast to day shifts or regular working hours.

The word 夜勤 is typically written in kanji and hiragana. ・Kanji: 夜勤 ・Hiragana: やきん There are no variations in okurigana for this word.

While there isn't a direct single-word synonym, you might use phrases or other words depending on the context: ・夜間勤務 (やかんきんむ, yakan kinmu): Nighttime work ・深夜勤務 (しんやきんむ, shinya kinmu): Late-night work ・夜番 (よばん, yoban): Night duty (informal)

The antonyms would be related to working during the day: ・日勤 (にっきん, nikkin): Day shift ・昼間勤務 (ひるまきんむ, hiruma kinmu): Daytime work

今週は《夜勤なので、昼間は寝ます。》 ・Translation: I will sleep during the day this week because I have a night shift. ・Explanation: This sentence explains that the speaker's schedule is affected by having a 夜勤 this week.

彼は《夜勤明けで疲れているようだ。》 ・Translation: It seems he is tired after finishing the night shift. ・Explanation: This sentence describes someone who appears tired because of having worked a 夜勤.

The word 夜勤 is a compound word: ・夜 (よ, yo) means "night." ・勤 (きん, kin) is derived from 勤務 (きんむ, kinmu), which means "work" or "service." Therefore, 夜勤 literally means "night work" or "night service".