"the whole natural day, a day and a night, twenty-four hours," 1680s, from Greek nykhthēmeron "a day and a night," from nykt-, a combining form of nyx "night" (see night) + hēmera "day," from PIE *Hehmer "day."

"fear of the night or darkness," 1885, medical Latin, from nycto-, variant of nycti- "night, darkness" + -phobia "fear." Related: Nyctophobic.

1938, coined, according to DuPont, from a random generic syllable nyl- + -on, a common ending in fiber names (compare rayon and later Dacron), said to be ultimately from cotton. "Consumer Reports" in 1939 called it "duPont's much-publicised new miracle yarn, which is scheduled to appear in 5,000,000 stockings next year and which is meantime giving rise to many rumors, hopes and fears." As an adjective from 1939. Nylons for "nylon stockings" is from 1940.

Nylon is the generic name chosen by the Dupont Company for a group of materials classed as synthetic linear superpolymers. It has also been defined as a "Man made protein-like chemical product (polyamide) which may be formed into fibers, bristles, sheets, and other forms, characterized when drawn by extreme toughness, elasticity, and strength." ["The Michigan Technic," August 1945]

"nylon stockings," 1940; see nylon.

late 14c., nimphe, "one of a class of semi-divine female beings in classical mythology," imagined as beautiful maidens, eternally young, from Old French nimphe (13c.) and directly from Latin nympha "nymph, demi-goddess; bride, mistress, young woman," from Greek nymphē "bride, young wife," later "beautiful young woman," then "semi-divine being in the form of a beautiful maiden;" usually said to be related to Latin nubere "to marry, wed" (see nuptial), but Beekes suggests a Pre-Greek origin.

Sub-groups include dryads, hamadryads, naiads, nereids, and oreads. The sense in English of "young and attractive woman" is attested from 1580s. Meaning "insect stage between larva and adult" is recorded from 1570s. Related: Nymphal; nymphean.

also nymphet, nymphete, "sexually attractive young girl," 1955, introduced by Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977) in his novel "Lolita" to describe an alluring (in the minds of some men) girl age 9 to 14; from nymph + diminutive suffix. Nymphet was used from 17c. in sense "a little nymph," but this was poetic only by late 19c.

"frenzy or rapture supposed to take hold of a man upon gazing on a nymph," 1775, coined by Richard Chandler, in "Travels in Greece," from nymph, on model of epilepsy, with second element from stem of Greek lambanein "to take." Sometimes used in an extended, general sense of "ecstasy or frenzy caused by desire for the unattainable." Ancient Greek had nympholeptos "caught by nymphs." Related: Nympholept; nympholeptic.

"morbid and uncontrollable sexual desire in women," 1775, in English translation of "Nymphomania, or a Dissertation Concerning the Furor Uterinus" (1771) by French doctor Jean Baptiste Louis de Thesacq de Bienville (1726-1813), coined from Greek nymphē "bride, young wife, young lady" (see nymph) + mania "madness" (see mania). Perhaps influenced by earlier French nymphomanie. Defined as "a female disease characterized by morbid and uncontrollable sexual desire." Compare also nympholepsy.

1861 (adj.) "characterized by or suffering from nymphomania;" 1867 (n.) "a woman who is afflicted with nymphomania;" from nymphomania.