Precambrian

Or Pre-Cam·bri·an

[pree-kam-bree-uhn, -keym-]

adjective

1. noting or pertaining to the earliest era of earth history, ending 570 million years ago, during which the earth's crust formed and life first appeared in the seas.

noun

1. the Precambrian Era.

Precambrian

/ priːˈkæmbrɪən /

adjective

1. of, denoting, or formed in the earliest geological era, which lasted for about 4 000 000 000 years before the Cambrian period

noun

1. the Precambrian era See Archaeozoic Proterozoic

Precambrian

1. The period of geologic time between Hadean Time and the Phanerozoic Eon, from about 3.8 billion to 540 million years ago. During the Precambrian Eon, which is divided into the Archean and Proterozoic, primitive forms of life first appeared on Earth.

2. See Chart at geologic time

Word History and Origins

Origin of Precambrian¹

First recorded in 1860–65; pre- + Cambrian

Example Sentences

But it wasn't till the Precambrian extinction 544 million years ago that they burst through their previous limits, generating new species that found new ways to live.

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They argued the cuts would cripple studies of museum collections holding some 5 million items, including a renowned trove of Precambrian fossils.

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The results were published in the journal Precambrian Research.

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In addition, because Precambrian biomarker records are extremely sensitive to contamination, the researchers used an ultra-clean method to extract organic matter from sediment cores.

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The landscape had started to change, and here and there amongst the green were slashes of black where the Precambrian rock grafted sharp hills and cut into craggy cliffs.

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