precipitate
/pri'sipitit/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Verb:
- To cause (something) to happen suddenly or unexpectedly: To bring about an event or situation, typically a negative one, in a rapid and often unplanned manner.
- To cause (a substance) to be deposited in solid form from a solution: In chemistry, to cause a dissolved substance to separate from a solution as a solid.
- To fall from the sky as rain, snow, sleet, or hail; to condense and fall from the atmosphere: To cause moisture in the air to condense and fall.
- To throw or hurl (someone or something) violently downwards: To cause to fall headlong or with great force.
Noun:
- A substance precipitated from a solution: In chemistry, a solid substance that has been separated from a liquid solution.
Adjective:
- Done with excessive or rash speed; acting or done suddenly without careful thought: Characterized by undue haste or impulsiveness.
Usage Examples
Verb:
- The assassination of the archduke precipitated the outbreak of World War I. (The event caused the war to begin suddenly.)
- Adding the acid will precipitate the salt crystals. (The chemical action will cause the salt to form a solid.)
- If the temperature drops, it will precipitate as snow. (Moisture will condense and fall as snow.)
- The landslide precipitated several boulders into the valley. (It hurled the boulders down violently.)
Noun:
- The white precipitate at the bottom of the beaker is silver chloride. (The solid that formed in the liquid.)
Adjective:
- His precipitate decision to quit his job left him in a difficult financial situation. (His hasty and ill-considered decision.)
Advanced Usage
"to precipitate a crisis": to cause a crisis to occur suddenly.
- The bank's failure precipitated a financial crisis across the region.
"to precipitate oneself into": (literary) to throw oneself into an action or situation with force or haste.
- He precipitated himself into the task with boundless energy.
Variants and Related Words
Precipitation (n): 1. The process of precipitating a substance. 2. Rain, snow, sleet, or hail that falls to the ground. 3. The fact of happening suddenly or quickly.
- The forecast calls for heavy precipitation.
- They acted with unwise precipitation.
Precipitous (adj): 1. Dangerously high or steep. 2. (Often confused with precipitate) Rapid and uncontrolled. (Note: Precipitous primarily describes physical steepness, while precipitate describes actions.)
- The climber avoided the precipitous cliff face.
Synonyms
- Verb (to cause): Trigger, provoke, spark, hasten, accelerate.
- Verb (to fall): Fall, descend.
- Adjective: Hasty, rash, impulsive, hurried, abrupt.
Related Phrasal Verbs
(The word "precipitate" itself is not commonly used in phrasal verb constructions. Its meanings are typically expressed directly.)
Related Idioms
- "precipitate matters": to cause events to develop more quickly than intended or desired.
- By confronting the manager publicly, she only succeeded in precipitating matters.
Adjective
- done with very great haste and without due deliberation
- hasty marriage seldom proveth well- Shakespeare
- hasty makeshifts take the place of planning- Arthur Geddes
- rejected what was regarded as an overhasty plan for reconversion
- wondered whether they had been rather precipitate in deposing the king
Noun
- a precipitated solid substance in suspension or after settling or filtering
Verb
- hurl or throw violently
- The bridge broke and precipitated the train into the river below
- fall vertically, sharply, or headlong
- Our economy precipitated into complete ruin
- fall from clouds
- rain, snow and sleet were falling
- Vesuvius precipitated its fiery, destructive rage on Herculaneum
- separate as a fine suspension of solid particles
- bring about abruptly
- The crisis precipitated by Russia's revolution