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
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
Christine Schultz
… stepping out into the quiet pre-dawn, closing the door.
—Bryan Burrough
Bryan Burrough
Examples of predawn in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In a predawn raid in Jackson Heights, scores of militarized agents from the Department of Homeland Security descended with assault weapons on a residential building, removing a man and woman from their apartment.
—Jordan Salama, New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2026
Attackers kill 3, abduct 11 in Nigeria ABUJA, Nigeria -- Gunmen killed three villagers and abducted 11 people, including a Catholic priest, during a predawn attack in northwest Nigeria on Saturday, church officials said.
—Arkansas Online, 8 Feb. 2026
Gunmen killed three villagers and abducted 11 people, including a Catholic priest, in a predawn attack on the priest’s residence in Kaduna state.
—Dyepkazah Shibayan, Los Angeles Times, 7 Feb. 2026
After a seasonably cool morning Friday with predawn temperatures in the upper 40s, a dry westerly wind should result in an afternoon in the middle to upper 70s.
—Newsroom Meteorologist, Houston Chronicle, 6 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for predawn
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Jordan Salama, New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2026
Attackers kill 3, abduct 11 in Nigeria ABUJA, Nigeria -- Gunmen killed three villagers and abducted 11 people, including a Catholic priest, during a predawn attack in northwest Nigeria on Saturday, church officials said.
—Arkansas Online, 8 Feb. 2026
Gunmen killed three villagers and abducted 11 people, including a Catholic priest, in a predawn attack on the priest’s residence in Kaduna state.
—Dyepkazah Shibayan, Los Angeles Times, 7 Feb. 2026
After a seasonably cool morning Friday with predawn temperatures in the upper 40s, a dry westerly wind should result in an afternoon in the middle to upper 70s.
—Newsroom Meteorologist, Houston Chronicle, 6 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for predawn
Cite this Entry
“Predawn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/predawn. Accessed 20 Feb. 2026.
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