Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. An overhanging or extremely steep mass of rock, such as a crag or the face of a cliff.
- n. The brink of a dangerous or disastrous situation: on the precipice of defeat.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A headlong fall; an abrupt descent.
- n. A bank or cliff extremely steep, or even perpendicular or overhanging; a headlong declivity.
- n. The brink of a steep declivity; hence, a dangerous place; a critical position; a perilous location.
Wiktionary
- n. A very steep cliff.
- n. The brink of a dangerous situation.
- n. obsolete A headlong fall or descent.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. obsolete A sudden or headlong fall.
- n. A headlong steep; a very steep, perpendicular, or overhanging place; an abrupt declivity; a cliff.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a very steep cliff
Etymologies
- First attested in 1598, from Latin *praecipitium ("a steep place"), from praeceps ("steep"), from prae + caput ("head"). First meaning of the noun is recorded from 1632. (Wiktionary)
- French précipice, from Latin praecipitium, from praeceps, praecipit-, headlong; see precipitate. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“So, yes, do I continue to oppose it and I do think the term precipice was a good choice of words, John.”
“The sound of a stone thrown over the precipice is heard for several li.”
“The word precipice is defined as a very steep, overhanging place or a hazardous situation.”
“That was precisely what happened in the U.K. at the start of the last decade, with marketing literature on what came to be known as "precipice bonds" underemphasizing the three-for-one losses on some plans, and resulting in millions of pounds of redress being ordered by the Financial Services Authority.”
“In reality, the conferees knew the only country that had an industrial base capable of pulling the world back from the precipice was the United States.”
“On this account I will call the precipice the Cliff without a”
“Acknowledging the fact that we are waltzing along a precipice is the first move in taking steps away from the edge.”
“To Holly, it looked as if the precipice was a straight fall, without so much as an angle to cushion the horse beneath them.”
“Marocco of several thousands, by taking a judicious position at the southern extremity of this narrow path and tremendous precipice, which is but a few yards in length.”
An Account of Timbuctoo and Housa Territories in the Interior of Africa
“Along the foot of the precipice was a row of unsightly and unsubstantial buildings, where the scant population lived, carried on their few handicrafts, and stored their winter provisions.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘precipice’.
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GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4087 more...
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Mirrored Vowels
Rules:
• The word must have an even number of vowels.
• There must be four or more vowels; thus, at minimum, an A-A-A-A or A-B-B-A pattern.
• The vowels must appear in a mir...feminine, solicitor, caruncular, repackager, semiprimes, fetishises, decomposer, demonlover, recomposer, sepultures, lipotropic, colesterol and 385 more...
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Words from Blood Meridian
visage, affray, scullery, miasma, mirth, purlieu, tacit, benighted, wickiup, corral, amble, accoutre and 210 more...
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Words build meanings from origins( et...
These come from gamma meditation ,I think.
discursive, exogenous, machinations, purportedly, sumptuous, congruity, cantankerous, incongruous, festoon, hessian, ratiocinative, stratigraphic and 2053 more...
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jaydrox's list
Mah list!
mediocracy, captivatingly, devastatingly, dazedly, heavenly, flawless, copious, conviction, synoptic, amalgamation, prefatory, precursory and 150 more...
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Thresholds
we are all just passing through.
(boundaries, portals and liminal spaces/times)cockcrow, interface, thin line, portal, postern, littoral, portico, porch, stoop, strand, liminal, limen and 304 more...
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ficciones's list
encyclopedic
imbroglio, splendour, brilliance, labyrinth, vast, precipice, ebb and flow, tidal, crevasse, resonate, redolent, prudent and 55 more...
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scholarly writing words
decrement, replete, impel, iterative, subsume, tacit, vex, denote, impart, ascertain, coalesce, extant and 49 more...
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big book gre
abase, abbess, abbey, abbot, abdicate, abdomen, abdominal, abduction, abed, aberration, abet, abeyance and 6691 more...
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verge
Century Dictionary
n. A rod, or something in the form of a rod or staff, carried as an emblem of authority or ensign of office; the mace of a bishop, dean, or other functionary.
brink, brim, zapatera, potance, cusp, edge, precipice, threshold, marge, viaticum, presque vu, selvage and 4 more...
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to memorize
words i need to memorize
aberrant, abscond, advocate, aggrandize, amalgamate, ambiguous, ambrosial, anomalous, antediluvian, antipathy, arbitrate, assuage and 163 more...
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Heart of Darkness
words collected reading Heart of Darkness
abject, tenebrous, obsequiously, precipice, craven, candour, sepulchral, languid
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MY COLLECTION
COLLECT FROM DIFFERENT PAPERS,WEBSITES,BOOKS AND MOVIES.
VAUDEVILLE, herbivores, BANDWAGON, PREY, squander, squabbling, Concierge, persuade, dethrone, cacophony, maize, ubiquitous and 98 more...
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Latin Spelling Bee List
need to know these words!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
inane, ambivalent, incriminate, interrupt, amicable, meticulous, animosity, curriculum, electoral, transect, condolences, bugle and 132 more...
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Angels and Demons Word list
behemoth, disquietude, exalted, heretical, schlock, delirium, precipice, infallible, fathom, fervent, cavern, ardent and 35 more...
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Words I Know
List of most of the words I've learned
garner, abase, abate, abdicate, abduct, aberration, abet, abhor, abide, abject, abjure, abnegation and 1046 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for precipice.
fbharjo head first?? Apr 24, 2007