Is 'en la noche' ever ok to use?

Question

I thought that when talking in general you use por la noche. For example, Veo la tele por la noche.

It seems like I hear and see 'en la noche' a lot, but I want to know if it's proper Spanish grammar.

Answer 1

Yes it is a proper expression. An example:

'En la noche del 3 de Junio el edificio quedó prácticamente destruida por el fuego"

'On the night of June 3rd the building was virtually destroyed by fire.'

So "en la noche" would be used to refer to a specific night related to the topic at hand.

Good question!