precipitate ADJ. /匆忙的;突然的;未成熟的;草率的/rash; premature; hasty; sudden. Though I was angry enough to resign on the spot, I had enough sense to keep myself from quitting a job in such a precipitate fashion.
precipitate V. /下降;下坠/throw headlong; haste n. The removal of American political support appears to have
precipitated the downfall of the Marcos regime.
precipitous ADJ. /陡峭的;急躁的/steep; overhasty. This hill is difficult to climb because it is so precipitous; one slip, and our descent will be precipitous as well.
précis N. /大纲;摘要/concise summing up of main points. Before making her presentation at the conference, Ellen wrote up a neat précis of the major elements she would cover.
precise ADJ. /精确的/exact. If you don't give me precise directions and a map, I'll never find your place.
preclude V. /消灭;杜绝/make impossible; eliminate. The fact that the band was already booked to play in Hollywood on New Year's Eve precluded their accepting the New Year's Eve gig in London they were offered.
precocious ADJ. /早熟的/advanced in development. Listening to the grown-up way the child discussed serious topics, we couldn't help remarking how precocious she was. precocity, N.
precursor N. /领跑者，先驱/forerunner. Though Gray and Burns share many traits with the Romantic poets who followed them, most critics consider them precursors of the Romantic Movement, not true Romantics.
predator N. /捕食者/creature that seizes and devours another animal; person who robs or exploits others. Not just cats, but a wide variety of predators-owls, hawks, weasels, foxescatch mice for dinner. A carnivore is by definition predatory, for he preys on weaker creatures.
predecessor N. /前任;前辈/former occupant of a post. I hope I can live up to the fine example set by my late
predecessor in this office.
predetermine V. /预定;预先确定/predestine; settle or decide beforehand; influence markedly. Romeo and Juliet believed that Fate had predetermined their meeting. Bea gathered estimates from caterers, florists, and stationers so that she could predetermine the costs of holding a catered buffet. Philip's love of athletics predetermined his choice of a career in sports marketing.
predicament N. /困境;危险的境地;两难/tricky or dangerous situation; dilemma. Tied to the railroad tracks by the villain,
Pauline strained against her bonds. How would she escape from this terrible predicament?
predilection N. /偏爱;偏好/partiality; preference. Although I have written all sorts of poetry over the years, I have a definite predilection for occasional verse.
predispose V. /预先安排，使其偏向于/give an inclination toward; make susceptible to. Oleg's love of dressing up his big sister's Barbie doll may have predisposed him to become a fashion designer. Genetic influences apparently predispose people to certain forms of cancer.
preeminent ADJ. /出色的;出类拔萃的/outstanding; superior. The king traveled to Boston because he wanted the
preeminent surgeon in the field to perform the operation.
preempt V. /排挤，代替;阻止;抢占;先发制人/head off; forestall by acting first; appropriate for oneself; supplant. Hoping to preempt any attempts by the opposition to make educational reform a hot political issue, the candidate set out her own plan to revitalize the public schools. preemptive, ADJ.
preen V. /把自己打扮漂亮;自我满足;鸟类用嘴梳理羽毛/make oneself tidy in appearance; feel self-satisfaction. As Kitty
preened before the mirror, carefully smoothing her shining hair, she couldn't help preening over how pretty she looked.
prehensile ADJ. /可以得到的;可以抓住的/capable of grasping or holding. Monkeys use not only their arms and legs but also their prehensile tails in traveling through the trees.
prelate N. /高级教士/church dignitary. The archbishop of Moscow and other high-ranking prelates visited the Russian Orthodox seminary.
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