precipitous C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities US /prɪˈsɪpətəs/ UK /prɪˈsɪpɪtəs/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 adj dangerously high or steep, or done suddenly and hastily Stocks took a precipitous fall after the announcement. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 adj · dangerously high or steep,... steepsheerabruptsuddenheadlonghastyprecipitate ↔ Opposites gradualgentledeliberate Word family Forms precipitously Derived forms precipitouslyprecipitousness Related forms precipiceprecipitateprecipitation Etymology AI details From Latin praecipitium ('a steep place, precipice') via precipice + -ous, from praeceps ('headlong'), from prae- ('before') + caput ('head'). praecipitium Latin praeceps Latin caput Latin View etymology graph -> Topics Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # precipitous **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** adj **IPA (US):** /prɪˈsɪpətəs/ **IPA (UK):** /prɪˈsɪpɪtəs/ ## Meanings 1. dangerously high or steep, or done suddenly and hastily ## Examples - Stocks took a precipitous fall after the announcement. ## Synonyms - steep - sheer - abrupt - sudden - headlong - hasty - precipitate ## Antonyms - gradual - gentle - deliberate ## Derived Forms - precipitously - precipitousness ## Related Forms - precipice - precipitate - precipitation ## Roots and Affixes - Root: praecipitium - Root: praeceps - Root: caput ## Etymology From Latin praecipitium ('a steep place, precipice') via precipice + -ous, from praeceps ('headlong'), from prae- ('before') + caput ('head'). ## AI Etymology Precipitous is from Latin praecipitium ('a steep place, precipice') via precipice + -ous, from praeceps ('headlong'), from prae- ('before') + caput ('head'). Important recorded forms include praecipitium (Latin), praeceps (Latin), and caput (Latin). Morphologically, the word is a built form whose named elements carry part of the historical sense. The current sense covers dangerously high or steep, or done suddenly and hastily. The wider family includes derived forms such as precipitously and precipitousness and related words such as precipice, precipitate, and precipitation. ## Topics - Describing Qualities - Word Formation & Derivatives markdown