the.com/overnight

The slowest path to success that somehow happens while you sleep.

means Happening during the course of a single night, or — more loosely — appearing suddenly as if it took no time at all.

from A plain compound of Old English roots: 'over' (ofer, meaning across or beyond) joined to 'night' (niht). Literally 'across the night,' it started as a humble adverb for the span of darkness between dusk and dawn — the time you'd stay somewhere or leave food to soak. The figurative 'overnight success,' meaning a transformation seemingly achieved in no time, is a much later extension, leaning on the idea that a single sleep is the shortest stretch a change could possibly take.

success myth
Most overnight sensations spent a decade getting there
banking term
Banks lend each other money overnight, constantly
word age
Used as an adverb since the 1300s
oats
Soaking grains overnight predates refrigerators entirely
for instance

fedex overnight — shipping service guaranteeing next-business-day delivery since 1971

overnight success — common phrase describing rapid fame, like justin bieber's youtube discovery in 2009

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