ass crack of dawn en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (US) audio
Etymology
From ass crack jocularly replacing crack in the (preexisting) noun phrase crack of dawn (= "break of dawn"); although ass crack (cleft, gap) and crack (break) are cognate, the jocularity nonetheless rests on the disjunction that is cognitively close to (albeit by some standards not technically) a pun.
Meanings
- (Canada, US, uncountable, vulgar) An intensifier, used in the same contexts as crack of dawn, but more intense.