dew

Etymology 1

From Middle English dew, from Old English dēaw (“dew”), from Proto-Germanic *dawwaz, *dawwą (“dew, moisture”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewh₂- (“smoke, haze”). Cognate with German Tau, Dutch dauw and Afrikaans dou. Doublet of dag.

noun

1. (uncountable) Any moisture from the atmosphere condensed by cool bodies upon their surfaces.
2. (uncountable) Moisture in the air that settles on plants, etc in the morning or evening, resulting in drops.
   Tree don't care what the little bird sings / We go down with the dew in the morning light / The tree don't know what the little bird brings / We go down with the dew in the morning 2013, “We No Who U R”, in Warren Ellis, Nick Cave (lyrics), Push the Sky Away, performed by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
3. (countable, but see usage notes) An instance of such moisture settling on plants, etc.
   There was a heavy dew this morning.
4. (figurative) Anything that falls lightly and in a refreshing manner.
5. (figurative) An emblem of morning, or fresh vigour.

Etymology 2

From Middle English dewe, dewyn, from Old English *dēawian, from Proto-West Germanic *dauwēn, from Proto-Germanic *dawwāną. Cognates include Saterland Frisian daue, German tauen and Dutch dauwen.

verb

1. To wet with, or as if with, dew; to moisten.
   The grasses grew / A little ranker since they dewed them so. 1887, Andrew B. Saxton, “Sunken Graves”, in The Century