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Precipitate

//pɹɪˈsɪpɪteɪt// adj, noun, verb

Definitions

Adjective
  1. 1
    headlong; falling steeply or vertically.

    "When the full stores their ancient bounds disdain, / Precipitate the furious torrent flows."

  2. 2
    Very steep; precipitous.
  3. 3
    With a hasty impulse; hurried; headstrong.

    "Though thoughtful far beyond your years, you are very inexperienced; and I would not have a preference that may originate in your little knowledge of others, or a romantic exaggeration of slight kindnesses, lead you into a precipitate union with me, unless you most seriously examine your own heart, and weigh the various consequences."

  4. 4
    Moving with excessive speed or haste; overly hasty.

    "The king was too precipitate in declaring war."

  5. 5
    Performed very rapidly or abruptly.

    "It had cost me a distinct psychological effort to do so, and now that I was shut inside I had a momentary longing for precipitate retreat."

Adjective
  1. 1
    done with very great haste and without due deliberation wordnet
Noun
  1. 1
    A product resulting from a process, event, or course of action.

    "As for the musculature it is a precipitate of Spirit and the signature of the cosmos is in it."

  2. 2
    a precipitated solid substance in suspension or after settling or filtering wordnet
  3. 3
    A solid that exits the liquid phase of a solution.
Verb
  1. 1
    To make something happen suddenly and quickly. transitive

    "to precipitate a journey, or a conflict"

  2. 2
    separate as a fine suspension of solid particles wordnet
  3. 3
    To throw an object or person from a great height. transitive

    "In gallopping heedlessly along, with her eyes turned upwards, she had unwarily approached too near the bank; it had given way with her, and she and her horse had been precipitated to the pebbled margin of the river."

  4. 4
    hurl or throw violently wordnet
  5. 5
    To send violently into a certain state or condition. transitive

    "we were precipitated into a conflict"

Show 9 more definitions
  1. 6
    bring about abruptly wordnet
  2. 7
    (chemistry) To come out of a liquid solution into solid form. intransitive

    "Adding the acid will cause the salt to precipitate."

  3. 8
    fall vertically, sharply, or headlong wordnet
  4. 9
    (chemistry) To separate a substance out of a liquid solution into solid form. transitive
  5. 10
    fall from clouds wordnet
  6. 11
    To have water in the air fall to the ground, for example as rain, snow, sleet, or hail; be deposited as condensed droplets. intransitive

    "It will precipitate tomorrow, but we don't know whether as rain or snow."

  7. 12
    To cause (water in the air) to condense or fall to the ground. transitive

    "The light vapour of the preceding evening had been precipitated by the cold."

  8. 13
    To fall headlong. intransitive
  9. 14
    To act too hastily; to be precipitous. intransitive

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Latin praecipitātus, perfect passive participle of praecipitō (“throw down, hurl down, throw headlong”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) for more), from praeceps (“head foremost, headlong”) (praecipit- in its oblique stem), from prae (“before”) + -ceps (“headed”).

Etymology 2

From Latin praecipitātus (see Etymology 1 and -ate (adjective-forming suffix) for more).

Etymology 3

From New Latin praecipitatum. Equivalent to Latin praecipitō + -ate (noun-forming suffix).

See also for "precipitate"

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