# false dawn

> English word · Noun

## Definitions
1. A thin ambient light which precedes true dawn, typically by around an hour, in certain parts of the world.
2. Something engendering premature hope; a promising sign which in fact leads to nothing.

## Etymology
From false + dawn, calque of Arabic صُبْح كَاذِب (ṣubḥ kāḏib).

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/false-dawn