precipitate

verb

1. (transitive)To make something happen suddenly and quickly.

   “to precipitate a journey, or a conflict”

   “it precipitated their success”

   “if they be stout and daring, it may precipitate their designs, and prove dangerous”

   “Back to his sight precipitates her steps.”

   “Freshly arrived in Paris in 1871 at the age of 17, Rimbaud proceded ^([sic]) to precipitate the collapse of Verlaine's marital menage, and with it his social position.”

2. (transitive)To throw an object or person from a great height.

   “In gallopping heedlessly along, with her eyes turned upwards, she had unwarily approached too near the bank; it had given way with her, and she and her horse had been precipitated to the pebbled margin of the river.”

3. (transitive)To send violently into a certain state or condition.

   “we were precipitated into a conflict”

4. (intransitive)(chemistry) To come out of a liquid solution into solid form.

   “Adding the acid will cause the salt to precipitate.”

5. (transitive)(chemistry) To separate a substance out of a liquid solution into solid form.
6. (intransitive)To have water in the air fall to the ground, for example as rain, snow, sleet, or hail; be deposited as condensed droplets.

   “It will precipitate tomorrow, but we don't know whether as rain or snow.”

7. (transitive)To cause (water in the air) to condense or fall to the ground.

   “The light vapour of the preceding evening had been precipitated by the cold.”

8. (intransitive)To fall headlong.
9. (intransitive)To act too hastily; to be precipitous.

adj

1. headlong; falling steeply or vertically.

   “When the full stores their ancient bounds disdain, / Precipitate the furious torrent flows.”

2. Very steep; precipitous.
3. With a hasty impulse; hurried; headstrong.

   “Though thoughtful far beyond your years, you are very inexperienced; and I would not have a preference that may originate in your little knowledge of others, or a romantic exaggeration of slight kindnesses, lead you into a precipitate union with me, unless you most seriously examine your own heart, and weigh the various consequences.”

4. Moving with excessive speed or haste; overly hasty.

   “The king was too precipitate in declaring war.”

   “a precipitate case of disease”

   “Being a trifle precipitate in his entry, he trod on a bottle, and was instantly extinguished by a Japanese screen, which appeared to collapse on him out of pure decrepitude.”

   “'One moment!" said Malone. "I beg, sir, that you will not be precipitate. I value your friendship too much to risk the loss of it if it can, in any way, be avoided."”

5. Performed very rapidly or abruptly.

   “It had cost me a distinct psychological effort to do so, and now that I was shut inside I had a momentary longing for precipitate retreat.”

noun

1. A product resulting from a process, event, or course of action.

   “As for the musculature it is a precipitate of Spirit and the signature of the cosmos is in it.”

2. A solid that exits the liquid phase of a solution.