dawn
noun
the first appearance of daylight in the morning.
dawn
1 American
[dawn]
/ dɔn /
noun
-
dawns
plural
verb (used without object)
-
dawns,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dawned,
past participle, past
-
dawning
present participle
Dawn
2
American
[dawn]
/ dɔn /
noun
dawn
British
/ dɔːn /
noun
-
daybreak; sunrise
-
the sky when light first appears in the morning
-
the beginning of something
verb
-
to begin to grow light after the night
-
to begin to develop, appear, or expand
-
to begin to become apparent (to)
dawn
Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
dawnsimple
-
dawnssimple
-
have dawnedperfect
-
has dawnedperfect
-
am dawningprogressive
-
are dawningprogressive
-
is dawningprogressive
-
have been dawningperfect progressive
-
has been dawningperfect progressive
Past
-
dawnedsimple
-
had dawnedperfect
-
was dawningprogressive
-
were dawningprogressive
-
had been dawningperfect progressive
Future
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.
See Examples For:
Punk emerged at the dawn of Ronald Reagan’s ascent from actor to president.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026
Steinem, who co-founded Ms. Magazine in 1971 and who popularized the saying “a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle,” became famous at the dawn of the Age of Aquarius.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
At the dawn of the internet, a select group of companies made a killing creating the equipment and business model for the system of glass strands bundled in cables, known as a fiber-optic network.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026
The gathered business leaders in Dublin or a US audience tuning in before it was even dawn in much of that country?
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
Shortly after dawn, they leaped from the trees and started chasing a poor calf through the pasture.
From "The Wild Robot Escapes" by Peter Brown
“The Crack of Dawn,” a beautiful, cool and cortisol-elevating heist short film presenting Emily Dawn Long’s SS27 collection, was a breath of fresh this week.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026
Golden Dawn made a sensational entry into parliament in 2012, in a climate of social distress linked to the financial crisis in Greece, loss of trust in institutions and discrediting of the main political parties.
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
Travel columnist Dawn Gilbertson provides a primer for travelers hoping to find the best shortcut through TSA screening.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026
Last month, Dawn Buckingham, who leads the General Land Office, sent a cease and desist letter to CBP and a federal contractor she said had illegally cleared GLO-owned land in Presidio County.
From Salon ● Aug. 24, 2026
Grandpa is already heading home, to call Dawn Celeste with the details.
From "A Heart in a Body in the World" by Deb Caletti
“Markets have seen plenty of false dawns throughout this conflict,” analysts at Deutsche Bank said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
In some sense, this is akin to the realization that dawns on most people regarding their parents: Before we came along, they had a whole identity that had nothing to do with us.
From Salon ● Feb. 4, 2026
Investors burned by false dawns in China’s property market are reluctant to reprice assets without unmistakable signals.
From Barron's ● Dec. 31, 2025
As 2026 dawns, it does feel that how United do in the winter transfer window will determine whether they will retain any hope of qualifying for the Champions League.
From BBC ● Dec. 30, 2025
It takes me a full minute before it dawns on me.
From "Free Lunch" by Rex Ogle
"I don't think it's dawned on us it's really ours," says Conroy, a video editor.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
And if Snead was going to win himself a championship, it dawned on him that everything that had carried the Rams to this point would have to change.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
Was there a specific moment when it dawned on the “Hacks” team that Jimmy and Kayla deserved more airtime?
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
“Suddenly, they referred to me as they used to refer to my father. Something dawned upon me: that I was the king now.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
The great day dawned misty and over-cast but the glass was high and we had no fears.
From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier
"I can't read instruction manuals, but I've watched YouTube tutorials," he says, generating a growling bass line that sounds like the dawning of the apocalypse.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026
“There’s just a dawning understanding of broader American consciousness about caregiving and aging. It’s a massive infrastructure issue and economic issue that will impact all of us in some way.”
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 16, 2026
Graham Burnett, a history professor at Princeton University, sees "the dawning of an authentic movement," similar to the birth of the environmental movement in the 1960s, which led to landmark environmental protections.
From Barron's ● Apr. 22, 2026
The dawning realization that the problems these men face aren’t failures at being men.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026
“You’re acting on Dumbledore’s orders?” she repeated with a look of dawning wonder.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
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.
