dawn
1 Americannoun
noun
noun
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daybreak; sunrise
-
the sky when light first appears in the morning
-
the beginning of something
verb
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to begin to grow light after the night
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to begin to develop, appear, or expand
-
to begin to become apparent (to)
Other Word Forms
- dawnlike adjective
- undawned adjective
Etymology
Origin of dawn
First recorded before 1150; Middle English dawen (verb), Old English dagian, derivative of dæg day; akin to Old Norse daga, Middle Dutch, Middle Low German dagen, Old High German tagēn
Explanation
The noun dawn refers to the first light of day, or the first time period, like the dawn of a new era, which occurs when a new president takes office. Not just the beginning of a day, the noun dawn can refer to any beginning, like the dawn of the Internet era. As a verb, dawn can mean "become light" or "become clear," like when it dawns on you that you left an important paper at home today. In that case, you can suddenly see what you did wrong, like at the dawn of a new day, when it is no longer dark and you can see, literally.
Vocabulary lists containing dawn
First-Name Basis: Words That Are Also Names
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Four people have been arrested during a dawn raid on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud following an investigation into the government's botched home insulation scheme.
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026
She said she and her partner, Michael Seward, were out before dawn.
From BBC • Apr. 17, 2026
She almost lost everything when her husband asked for a divorce at the dawn of the Covid-19 pandemic.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026
His wife, who cleans hospitals, starts work before dawn and does school pickup in the afternoon.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026
He was so racked with guilt about stealing the ring that he had already decided to flee Saint Petersburg at dawn and make a new life for himself elsewhere.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
