daybreak; sunrise
the sky when light first appears in the morning
the beginning of something
to begin to grow light after the night
to begin to develop, appear, or expand
to begin to become apparent (to)
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
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.
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
His arrival at Adobe came at the dawn of software-as-a service, which at the time was a revolutionary shift toward monetizing software via subscription business models.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 9, 2026
Other big winners included Ragtime, about three families pursuing the American dream at the dawn of the 20th Century, and Schmigadoon!, a comedic celebration of theatre's golden age, adapted from the Apple TV series.
From BBC • Jun. 8, 2026
Below, the Matachel River ran smooth in the silent dawn.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026
From dawn, crowds of pilgrims gathered in the valley of Mina, southeast of the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, to throw pebbles at concrete pillars symbolising the devil.
From Barron's • May 27, 2026
I call the dogs to increase speed and we run through the rest of the darkness and at dawn I see a cabin which signals the end of the Burn.
From "Woodsong" by Gary Paulsen
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.
