precipitation

[pri-sip-i-tey-shuhn]

noun

1. the act of precipitating; state of being precipitated.

2. a casting down or falling headlong.

3. a hastening or hurrying in movement, procedure, or action.

4. sudden haste.

5. unwise or rash rapidity.

6. Meteorology.

   1. falling products of condensation in the atmosphere, as rain, snow, or hail.

   2. the amount of rain, snow, hail, etc., that has fallen at a given place within a given period, usually expressed in inches or centimeters of water.

7. Chemistry, Physics.,  the precipitating of a substance from a solution.

precipitation

/ prɪˌsɪpɪˈteɪʃən /

noun

1. meteorol

   1. rain, snow, sleet, dew, etc, formed by condensation of water vapour in the atmosphere

   2. the deposition of these on the earth's surface

   3. the amount precipitated

2. the production or formation of a chemical precipitate

3. the act of precipitating or the state of being precipitated

4. rash or undue haste

5. spiritualism the appearance of a spirit in bodily form; materialization

precipitation

1. A form of water, such as rain, snow, or sleet, that condenses from the atmosphere, becomes too heavy to remain suspended, and falls to the Earth's surface. Different atmospheric conditions are responsible for the different forms of precipitation.

2. The process by which a substance is separated out of a solution as a solid. Precipitation occurs either by the action of gravity or through a chemical reaction that forms an insoluble compound out of two or more soluble compounds.

precipitation

1. In meteorology, the fall of water, ice, or snow deposited on the surface of the Earth from the atmosphere. In chemistry, a chemical reaction in a solution in which a solid material is formed and subsequently falls, as a precipitate, to the bottom of the container.

Other Word Forms

• nonprecipitation noun
• self-precipitation noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of precipitation¹

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Latin praecipitātiōn-, stem of praecipitātiō “a casting down headlong,” equivalent to praecipitāt(us) “cast down headlong” (past participle of praecipitāre precipitate ) + -iō -ion

Example Sentences

Most areas will experience around six to eight hours of precipitation, weather service officials in Oxnard said.

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Most areas will experience around six to eight hours of precipitation, the weather service office in Onxard said.

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The rain could even end up being a helpful follow-up to the precipitation from the past few weeks to stifle the possibility of wildfires.

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Her feelings of kinship with precipitation are transmuted into a delightfully conceived scene in which little versions of Amélie appear inside every falling raindrop.

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The Sahara Desert is known as one of the driest places on Earth, receiving only about 3 inches of precipitation each year -- roughly one-tenth of what falls in Chicago.

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Related Words

• drizzle 
• rain 
• rainfall 
• rainstorm 
• sleet 
• snow 
• storm