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

The best time to hunt for the comet is in the predawn hours, when the constellation Virgo will have risen high in the sky. —Anthony Wood, Space.com, 8 Jan. 2026

The predawn assault included strikes on key military facilities, while US cyber teams blacked out the lights in Caracas. —J.d. Capelouto, semafor.com, 4 Jan. 2026

For stargazers, that means the best time to catch the Quadrantid meteors will be in the predawn hours, astronomers say. —Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 2 Jan. 2026

At night, skies will be mostly clear, with temperatures heading into predawn Saturday as low as 56 degrees. —Roberto Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 1 Jan. 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