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• précis
  précis

  noun

  a concise summary.
• precis
  precis

  noun

  a summary of the essentials of a text; abstract

précis

American  

[prey-see, prey-see] / preɪˈsi, ˈpreɪ si /

noun

• précis
  plural

1. a concise summary.

   Synonyms:

   abstract, condensation, digest

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verb (used with object)

1. to make a précis of.

precis British  

/ ˈpreɪsiː /

noun

1. a summary of the essentials of a text; abstract

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verb

1. (tr) to make a precis of

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• précis
  plural

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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

précis precis

They named Dr. Seuss, Shel Silverstein and Lemony Snicket before moving on to a précis of Joy Williams’ flash fiction.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026

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 brief, tactful summary may be in order, a kind of Google Maps précis of the route.

From New York Times ● Jan. 14, 2022

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

In any case the précis begins with these illuminating sentences: 94 ...

From The Fight For The Republic in China by B. L. (Bertram Lenox) Putnam Weale

A neat precis of Pakistan's World Cup campaign, overall.

From BBC ● Feb. 28, 2026

"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

In character as Bobby, the museum’s chief curator, Eichner gave a brief precis of Hirschfeld’s career, finishing with an ad-lib, “Tragically, he’s also my type.”

From New York Times ● May 18, 2022

And there let me stop, even though Connington’s provocative and suspenseful novel includes much more than I’ve touched on in this partial precis.

From Washington Post ● May 26, 2021

With this brittle precis of her obligations he left the table and went toward the bedroom.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan