This phrase comes from another: “As silent as the grave” which means incredibly quiet, implying that this shift is likely to be quiet and uneventful. These are often called examples of "folk etymology," as these origin stories are made up and spread by people who enjoy folklore, but are not based on historical events. The term has a quite unnerving and more macabre origin altogether. The term has come a long way from just being another time slot for laborers to come to work their shifts until dawns early light. How to use graveyard shift idiom? graveyard shift idiom meaning. What does graveyard shift expression mean? Get Page and check your text using a unique Contextual Grammar and Spell Checker. Have you ever wondered about the term "Graveyard Shift’’? Spanish: turno … Graveyard shift definition is - a work shift beginning late at night (such as 11 o'clock); also : the workers on such a shift. It comes from the quiet, lonely ambience of the small hours. A few phrases that have some of the most famous folk etymology stories are the wrongly connected, such as: "graveyard shift," "dead ringer" and … Meaning: A period of work that usually goes from midnight to 8 a.m. The origin of the term 'graveyard shift' can be found in America, at the latter end of the 1800s. Example sentences with graveyard shift idiom. idiom: A group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the individual words. Graveyard shift definition, a work shift usually beginning at about midnight and continuing for about eight hours through the early morning hours. See more. Example Sentence: My boss said he would give me a raise if I worked the graveyard shift, but I prefer to work in the daytime. Looks like I’m going to be working the graveyard shift tonight, I’m going to be so tired tomorrow! There are a lot of myths about how phrases originated over time. Definition of graveyard shift by the Dictionary of American Idioms.