dawn

[[t]dɔ͟ːn[/t]]

dawns, dawning, dawned

1) N-VAR Dawn is the time of day when light first appears in the sky, just before the sun rises.

Nancy woke at dawn.

Syn:

sunrise, daybreak

2) N-SING: usu the N of n The dawn of a period of time or a situation is the beginning of it. [LITERARY]

We can only guess what went through the mind of a man who could look back to the dawn of powered flight.

...the dawn of the radio age.

3) VERB If something is dawning, it is beginning to develop or come into existence. [WRITTEN]

Throughout Europe a new railway age, that of the high-speed train, has dawned...

A new era seemed to be about to dawn for the coach and his young team...

[V-ing] Now there is a dawning realisation that drastic action is necessary.

Derived words:

dawning N-SING oft the N of n

...the dawning of the space age...

Tettlinger uncovered his eyes in the first dawning of hope.

4) VERB When you say that a particular day dawned, you mean it arrived or began, usually when it became light. [WRITTEN]

When the great day dawned, the inevitable first concern was the weather...

[V adj] The next day dawned sombre and gloomy.

5) at the crack of dawn → see crack

Phrasal Verbs:

- dawn on

- dawn upon