precipice
Americannoun
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a cliff with a vertical, nearly vertical, or overhanging face.
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a situation of great peril.
on the precipice of war.
noun
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the steep sheer face of a cliff or crag
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the cliff or crag itself
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a precarious situation
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of precipice
1590–1600; < Middle French < Latin praecipitium steep place, equivalent to praecipit- (stem of praeceps ) steep, headlong ( prae- pre- + -cipit-, combining form of caput head; see caput) + -ium -ium
Explanation
Cartoon characters often end up on a precipice, the edge of a steep cliff, where their chubby toes curl and cling as they totter and eventually fall, making a hole in the ground below and getting up again. Most real people avoid precipices. Unless you're a skilled climber or mountain-sport enthusiast, a precipice is a scary thing. Some imagine falling off and making the sharp drop, while others get dizzy just thinking about looking down. This makes sense, considering that the 17th-century English word precipice comes, through French, from Latin words meaning "headlong" and "abrupt descent." In modern use, precipice also describes how it feels to fall, or fail, in areas of life that don't involve mountains, such as being "on the precipice of losing everything."
Vocabulary lists containing precipice
100 Words Every Middle Schooler Should Know
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"The Ravine," Vocabulary from the short story
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A Spelling Bee for Fun
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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.
At the precipice of an odyssey that will challenge the half-lives they’ve lived so far, the sisters’ anger is palpable.
From Salon • May 19, 2026
The major market indexes fell for the fourth straight week, pushing the Nasdaq Composite to the precipice of a correction, which would mark a 10% drop from a recent high.
From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026
The influencer and reality star was on the precipice of making her debut on the dating series before the latest crossover attempt by a member of ‘The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives’ was derailed.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 20, 2026
But the fact that these investors must now unwind their hedges could help keep the market off the precipice by requiring some forced buying.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 9, 2026
It’s one thing to acknowledge it theoretically, and quite another thing to have a thin, shaky girl standing on the other side of the precipice.
From "Every Day" by David Levithan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
