1. The time each morning at which daylight first begins.
2. A first appearance; a beginning: the dawn of history. See synonyms at beginning.

1. To begin to become light in the morning.
2. To begin to appear or develop; emerge.
3. To begin to be perceived or understood: Realization of the danger soon dawned on us.

[From Middle English daunen, to dawn, probably a back-formation from dauning, daybreak, alteration of dauing, from Old English dagung, from dagian, to dawn.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.