dawn

dawn

I

dawn¹ /dɔːn $ dɒːn/ noun [uncountable and countable]1. the time at the beginning of the day when light first appears
   SYN  daybreak ⇨ dusk
    at dawn
    The boats set off at dawn.
    When dawn broke (=the first light of the day appeared), we were still 50 miles from Calcutta.
    I was up at the crack of dawn (=very early in the morning) to get the plane.
    We worked from dawn to dusk (=through the whole day while it is light).
    the cold light of dawn
2. the dawn of civilization/time etc the time when something began or first appeared:
    People have been falling in love since the dawn of time.
3. a false dawn something that seems positive or hopeful but really is not:
    There was talk of share prices recovering, but that was just a false dawn.
     

THESAURUS

   ▪ beginning the first part of something such as a story, event, or period of time: The beginning of the movie is very violent. | Let’s go back to the beginning.
   ▪ start the beginning of something, or the way something begins: Tomorrow marks the start of the presidential election campaign. | It was not a good start to the day. | The runners lined up for the start of the race.
   ▪ commencement formal the beginning of something – used especially in official contexts: the commencement of the academic year | the commencement of the contract
   ▪ origin the point from which something starts to exist: He wrote a book about the origins of the universe. | The tradition has its origins in medieval times.
   ▪ the onset of something the time when something bad begins, such as illness, old age, or cold weather: the onset of winter | An active lifestyle can delay the onset of many diseases common to aging.
   ▪ dawn literary the beginning of an important period of time in history: People have worshipped gods since the dawn of civilization.
   ▪ birth the beginning of something important that will change many people’s lives: the birth of democracy in South Africa | the birth of the environmental movement

II

dawn² verb [intransitive]
1. if day or morning dawns, it begins:
    The morning dawned fresh and clear after the storm.
2. if a period of time or situation dawns, it begins:
    The age of Darwin had dawned.
3. if a feeling or idea dawns, you have it for the first time:
    It began to dawn that something was wrong.
     
dawn on somebody phrasal verb
  if a fact dawns on you, you realize it for the first time:
    The ghastly truth dawned on me.
    It dawned on me that Jo had been right all along.