dawned; dawning; dawns
1
: to begin to grow light as the sun rises
waited for the day to dawn
2
: to begin to appear or develop
a new era is dawning
3
: to begin to be perceived or understood
the truth finally dawned on us
Synonyms
Examples of dawn in a Sentence
Verb
They waited for the day to dawn.
A new age is dawning.
Noun
as dawn breaks over the city
Winter brings late dawns and early sunsets.
Recent Examples on the Web
Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2024
But the Clipper mission signifies a dawning era of enlightenment as this region’s subsurface seas snap into sharper focus.
—Nadia Drake, Scientific American, 14 Oct. 2024
Ed Caesar, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024
My pair has clocked too many miles to count on several walking tours (my favorite way to see a new city), from Tokyo to London to Tulum, and are perfect for that unexpected adventure, like a hike up a volcano in Bali before dawn (true story!).
—Lauren Bonney, Travel + Leisure, 4 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for dawn 
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Verb
But for the next four years, until the next presidential campaign, and forever after, there will be no end of people explaining how the outcome was clear as the dawning daylight all along.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2024
But the Clipper mission signifies a dawning era of enlightenment as this region’s subsurface seas snap into sharper focus.
—Nadia Drake, Scientific American, 14 Oct. 2024
Noun
On May 8, 2023, shortly before dawn, Jordanian fighter jets bombed Ramthan’s family house.
—Ed Caesar, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024
My pair has clocked too many miles to count on several walking tours (my favorite way to see a new city), from Tokyo to London to Tulum, and are perfect for that unexpected adventure, like a hike up a volcano in Bali before dawn (true story!).
—Lauren Bonney, Travel + Leisure, 4 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for dawn
Dictionary Entries Near dawn
Cite this Entry
“Dawn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dawn. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
dawn
1 of 2 verb
ˈdȯn 
ˈdän
1
: to begin to grow light as the sun rises
waited for the day to dawn
2
: to begin to appear or develop
a smile dawned on her face
3
: to begin to be understood
the solution dawned on him
dawn
2 of 2 noun1
: the first appearance of light in the morning
2
: a first appearance : beginning
the dawn of a new age
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