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dawn 1 of 2

noun

Definition of dawnnext
1
as in sunrise
the first appearance of light in the morning or the time of its appearance we stayed up talking until dawn

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in beginning
the point at which something begins the dawn of civilization

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

dawn

2 of 2

verb

ˈdȯn How to pronounce dawn (audio)
as in to start
to come into existence a smile dawned on his face as he got the joke

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of dawn
Noun
There are scenes shot at dawn, dusk, day and night, in beautiful weather and in pouring rain, the latter of which inevitably results in gorgeous rainbows. — Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 17 Sep. 2026 This dates back to the dawn of consumer-facing chatbot AI, which didn’t have a long honeymoon period as exciting and life-changing tech. — Ashley Gold, semafor.com, 15 Sep. 2026
Verb
When the age of book promotion scams dawned, an AI engine clearly had read the book but did not know that Orwell had died in 1950. — Literary Hub, 3 Sep. 2026 In this dawning age of artificial intelligence, tech companies are racing to train and run their large language models using massive data centers that guzzle electricity and strain resources. — Arielle Frommer, Scientific American, 20 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for dawn
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dawn
  1. sunrise
  2. beginning
  3. start
  4. dawning
  5. inception
  6. begin
  7. day
  8. onset
Noun
  • In reality, most locations experience slightly more than 12 hours of daylight on the equinox, thanks to atmospheric refraction and the way sunrise and sunset times are defined.
    — Anthony Wood, Space.com, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Orthodox Jewish leaders have argued that later winter sunrises could complicate prayer schedules that are tied to sunrise and sunset.
    — Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of sunrise
Noun
  • One thing that has changed since the beginning of the charter is the relationship between cabinmates Kat and Gen, who used to be close until Gen got a little too comfortable.
    — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 22 Sep. 2026
  • That equipment ultimately failed to lure back shoppers and the company conducted another round of layoffs at the beginning of the year.
    — Jordan Valinsky, CNN Money, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of beginning
Verb
  • Hormonal conditions Many women may notice hair loss with changes in hormones such as during pregnancy, menopause or even after starting or stopping birth control pills.
    — Lindsey Bever, Washington Post, 26 Sep. 2026
  • The 911 caller told dispatchers a person in the building started the fire and fled the scene.
    — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of start
Noun
  • The quiet moments, the grief, the slow dawning of realization that her husband had written this piece as a way of dealing with his grief and her anger.
    — Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Mar. 2026
  • Ever enterprising, Toha does eventually make her way back to the party, but there, the ultimate dawning of her place outside of Nelly’s circle is heartbreaking.
    — Alissa Simon, Variety, 25 Feb. 2026
Definition of dawning
Noun
  • The Coyote, known since its inception to be a temporary venture, closed in September after 14 years.
    — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Sep. 2026
  • Kansas is one of four tracks to host a Chase race every year since its inception in 2004.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of inception
Verb
  • Soon after the mother and daughter took over the kitchen, lines began forming inside the supermarket.
    — Laura Rodríguez Presa, Chicago Tribune, 26 Sep. 2026
  • Release can begin with simply deciding not to keep feeding the same pattern.
    — Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of begin
Noun
  • Geiger-Müller and neutron detectors found no detectable gamma or X-ray emissions, while neutron counts remained statistically indistinguishable from background during about five days of monitoring.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 22 Sep. 2026
  • My king bed was crisp, puffy, and beyond dreamy to slip into after a long day on my feet.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of day
Noun
  • Green Bay Packers’ all-time leading rusher Ahman Green, who recently announced his diagnosis with early-onset Parkinson’s disease, will get the Matthew Thomas Robinson Courage Award.
    — Angelique Jackson, Variety, 21 Sep. 2026
  • After the show, the remainder of the tour was halted by the onset of COVID-19, and the rescheduled shows were later canceled due to health complications related to Dion’s stiff-person syndrome diagnosis.
    — Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of onset

Phrases Containing dawn

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dawdling
dawn
dawned
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Cite this Entry

“Dawn.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dawn. Accessed 28 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on dawn

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about dawn

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