predawn

adjective

pre·​dawn ˌprē-ˈdȯn 

-ˈdän

variants or less commonly pre-dawn

: existing or occurring before dawn

a predawn attack

the predawn hours

… the gigantic telescope started scanning the predawn sky.

—Howard Blum

predawn noun

or less commonly pre-dawn

plural predawns also pre-dawns

The most bone-chilling predawns create the sharpest sunrises.

—Christine Schultz

… stepping out into the quiet pre-dawn, closing the door.

—Bryan Burrough

Examples of predawn in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

How to maximize your chances The moon won't get in the way of your predawn meteor hunting, but city lights most certainly will! —Anthony Wood, Space.com, 20 Apr. 2026

When the moon sets early in the morning or just after midnight, the sky will be black and ideal for viewing during the predawn hours. —Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 17 Apr. 2026

The predawn Molotov cocktail attack on Sam Altman’s San Francisco home has signaled a volatile new era of anti-tech extremism, sparking fears among federal authorities that this could ignite a wave of copycat strikes against high-profile executives. —Sarah Rumpf-Whitten , Brooke Taylor, FOXNews.com, 14 Apr. 2026

The best time to observe the Lyrids is in the predawn hours (after moonset and before dawn) when the shower's radiant is at its highest in the sky. —Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 13 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1883, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for predawn

• anton
• argon
• axon
• baronne
• baryon
• baton
• boron
• buisson
• bygone
• capon
• cardon
• chiffon