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 the predawn hours of Jan. 4, with many students away on winter break, a massive contingent of law enforcement officers converged on the park, for an hours-long operation, clearing out activists and encampments.
—Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times, 6 June 2024
The line began forming in the predawn hours outside the consulate’s Little Italy office and quickly wrapped around the block.
—Alexandra Mendoza, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 June 2024
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue paramedics took 22 people to local hospitals early Tuesday morning after a water heater leaked carbon monoxide through a West Miami-Dade condo building, sending people into the street in the predawn hours to avoid the deadly gas fumes.
—David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 4 June 2024
In the predawn hours of March 26, another crisis struck.
—Emily Opilo, Baltimore Sun, 29 Apr. 2024
Across the parking lot, barely visible in the predawn light, a teenager labored to clear the McDonald’s sidewalk.
—Emily Harnett, Harper's Magazine, 26 Apr. 2024
In the predawn darkness of Sept. 4, 2023, a passing truck driver saw a teenager lying in the fetal position on the side of an Oklahoma highway.
—Emily Palmer, Peoplemag, 14 May 2024
But tragedy struck the family again in the predawn hours of Thursday morning.
—Omar Rodríguez Ortiz, Miami Herald, 11 May 2024
Authorities released the name of an 18-year-old Navy man from Riverside County who was killed last weekend in a predawn car crash on state Route 163 near Mission Valley.
—City News Service, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 May 2024
Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times, 6 June 2024
The line began forming in the predawn hours outside the consulate’s Little Italy office and quickly wrapped around the block.
—Alexandra Mendoza, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 June 2024
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue paramedics took 22 people to local hospitals early Tuesday morning after a water heater leaked carbon monoxide through a West Miami-Dade condo building, sending people into the street in the predawn hours to avoid the deadly gas fumes.
—David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 4 June 2024
In the predawn hours of March 26, another crisis struck.
—Emily Opilo, Baltimore Sun, 29 Apr. 2024
Across the parking lot, barely visible in the predawn light, a teenager labored to clear the McDonald’s sidewalk.
—Emily Harnett, Harper's Magazine, 26 Apr. 2024
In the predawn darkness of Sept. 4, 2023, a passing truck driver saw a teenager lying in the fetal position on the side of an Oklahoma highway.
—Emily Palmer, Peoplemag, 14 May 2024
But tragedy struck the family again in the predawn hours of Thursday morning.
—Omar Rodríguez Ortiz, Miami Herald, 11 May 2024
Authorities released the name of an 18-year-old Navy man from Riverside County who was killed last weekend in a predawn car crash on state Route 163 near Mission Valley.
—City News Service, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 May 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'predawn.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near predawn
Cite this Entry
“Predawn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/predawn. Accessed 11 Jun. 2024.
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