précis
noun
a concise summary.
précis
American
[pray-see, pray-see]
/ preɪˈsi, ˈpreɪ si /
noun
-
précis
plural
verb (used with object)
precis
British
/ ˈpreɪsiː /
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of précis
1750–60; < French, noun use of adj., literally, cut short. See precise
Explanation
A precis is a summary of something's main points. If you've ever jotted down notes about your main ideas before writing a persuasive essay, you've used a precis. Precis looks like precise, and of course, you always want your precis to be precise. But the words are pronounced differently. Precis comes from the French word précis, so say it like this: "PRAY see." Or you can accent the other syllable: "pray SEE." The s is only pronounced if the word is plural: "PRAY sees." The spelling stays the same.
Vocabulary lists containing precis
The Picture of Dorian Gray
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English Words Derived from French, List 11
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Vocabulary from the Lyrics of Stephen Sondheim, Volume I
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
As a précis to a larger, more scholarly work, it lacks the depth and historical context that many enthusiasts of classical drama may be hungry for.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 8, 2026
A précis of Elmer’s early life in Maine is run through by members of the eight-person cast in the bouncy, no-nonsense manner of a graphic novel.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 27, 2025
A zippy 1967 film by Jacques Tati, “Playtime,” has a scene that serves as a clean précis for “Figure It Out’s” credo.
From Washington Post ● May 11, 2020
I dug around in my daypack and found the précis to Nietzsche’s mature philosophy, “The Antichrist,” published in 1898, years after he supposedly went insane.
From New York Times ● Sep. 22, 2018
None of the great French preachers admit of logical abstraction and précis so well as he.
From A Short History of French Literature by George Saintsbury
A neat precis of Pakistan's World Cup campaign, overall.
From BBC ● Feb. 28, 2026
A recurring line from “First Reformed” feels like a precis for all of these: Will God forgive us?
From New York Times ● Dec. 5, 2024
"The performances are accomplished. Norton gives us a soul broken into fragments. The play, inevitably can only deliver a precis of a book that sprawls over some 700 pages."
From BBC ● Apr. 6, 2023
“Only attach” might even serve as the briefest precis possible of the field now known as attachment theory.
From Washington Post ● May 7, 2020
“That document, you understand,” said Poirot, “is a mere precis of the evidence we heard, arranged that way for convenience.”
From "Murder on the Orient Express" by Agatha Christie
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
