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praeceps. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
praeceps, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
praeceps in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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Latin
Etymology
From prae (“before”) + -ceps (“headed”).
Pronunciation
Adjective
praeceps (genitive praecipitis); third-declension one-termination adjective
- head first, headlong
- steep, precipitous
27 BCE – 25 BCE,
Titus Livius,
Ab Urbe Condita 38.23.1:
- Ruunt caeci per vias, per invia; nulla praecipitia saxa, nullae rupes obstant
- They rush blindly by roads, or without roads; no steep stones, no cliffs hinder them
- (figuratively) hasty, rash, precipitate
Declension
Third-declension one-termination adjective.
Derived terms
Descendants
Adverb
praeceps (not comparable)
- headlong
Noun
praeceps n (genitive praecipitis); third declension
- a precipice, steep place
- extreme danger
Declension
Third-declension noun (neuter, “pure” i-stem).
Descendants
References
- “praeceps”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “praeceps”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- praeceps in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
- Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book, London: Macmillan and Co.
- to fall down headlong: praecipitem ire; in praeceps deferri
- to bring a man to ruin; to destroy: aliquem affligere, perdere, pessumdare, in praeceps dare
- to be ruined, undone: praecipitem agi, ire
- to be short-tempered; to be prone to anger: praecipitem in iram esse (Liv. 23. 7)
- to be carried away by something: praecipitem ferri aliqua re (Verr. 5. 46. 121)
- headlong flight: fuga effusa, praeceps (Liv. 30. 5)
- to flee headlong: praecipitem se fugae mandare