•We woke at dawn.天一亮我们就醒了。

•We left as dawn was breaking (= starting).我们离开时天将破晓。

•We left at the break of dawn.我们是在天刚破晓时离开的。

•Twenty-three people were arrested and large quantities of heroin were seized in a dawn raid (= when police officers suddenly enter a building, in an attempt to catch people involved in illegal activities).在一次清晨突袭行动中，警方逮捕了23人，并没收了大量的海洛因。

•The fall of the Berlin Wall marked the dawn of a new era in European history.柏林墙的倒塌标志着欧洲历史上一个新纪元的开始。

•We worked from dawn to dusk, seven days a week.我们从早到晚地工作，一周七天都是如此。

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•He left the house just as the day was dawning.天将破晓时他离开了那座房子。

•As 1990 dawned, few people could have predicted the dramatic changes that were to take place in eastern Europe during that year.1990年到来之时，几乎没人能预见到在那一年里东欧将发生剧烈的变化。

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•Gradually the truth about him dawned.他的真实面目渐渐暴露了出来。

•[+ that] It eventually dawned that he wouldn't be coming back.最终证明他不会回来了。

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•[+ that] I was about to pay for the shopping when it suddenly dawned on me that I'd left my cheque book at home.我买完东西要付钱时，才突然发现我把支票簿留在家里了。