Showing results for precess. Search instead for precessing.

precess

American

[pree-ses] / priˈsɛs /

verb (used without object)

Mechanics.

to undergo precession.

precess British

/ prɪˈsɛs /

verb

to undergo or cause to undergo precession

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of precess

First recorded in 1890–95; back formation from precession

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:

precess

A planet orbiting both stars experiences competing gravitational pulls, which cause its orbit to slowly rotate, or precess, much like a spinning top wobbling under gravity.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 19, 2026

"When the inner disk tears off, it will precess independently," Kaaz said.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2023

At the same time, this magnetic field causes the spin of the muons to precess smoothly like a gyroscope, as the particles travel around the ring, but with a small wobble.

From Scientific American ● Sep. 14, 2021

Whereas Newton predicted that a planet should orbit its star in an ellipse, general relativity predicts that the orientation of the ellipse should advance slightly, or precess, with each orbit.

From Science Magazine ● Jan. 7, 2021

To "do up" a formal ruff was a wearisome, difficult, and costly precess.

From Two Centuries of Costume in America, Volume 1 (1620-1820) by Alice Morse Earle

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023