precocious
- precocious
-
/pri koh"sheuhs/, adj.
1. unusually advanced or mature in development, esp. mental development: a precocious child.
2. prematurely developed, as the mind, faculties, etc.
3. of or pertaining to premature development.
4. Bot.
a. flowering, fruiting, or ripening early, as plants or fruit.
b. bearing blossoms before leaves, as plants.
c. appearing before leaves, as flowers.
[
1640-50; L praecoci-, s. of praecox (see PRECOCITY) + -OUS]
* * *
Universalium.
2010.
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Look at other dictionaries:
Precocious — Pre*co cious, a. [L. praecox, ocis, and praecoquus, fr. praecoquere to cook or ripen beforehand; prae before + coquere to cook. See 3d {Cook}, and cf. {Apricot}.] 1. Ripe or mature before the proper or natural time; early or prematurely ripe or… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
precocious — [prē kō′shəs, prikō′shəs] adj. [< L praecox < praecoquere, to boil beforehand < prae , before (see PRE ) + coquere, to mature, COOK] 1. developed or matured to a point beyond that which is normal for the age [a precocious child] 2. of or … English World dictionary
precocious — (adj.) 1640s, developed before the usual time, from L. praecox (gen. praecocis) maturing early, from prae before (see PRE (Cf. pre )) + coquere to ripen, lit. to cook (see COOK (Cf. cook) (n.)). Originally of flowers or fruits. Figurative use, of … Etymology dictionary
precocious — untimely, forward, *premature, advanced Analogous words: immature, unmatured, unripe Antonyms: backward … New Dictionary of Synonyms
precocious — [adj] exceptionally smart, ahead of age in understanding advanced, aggressive, ahead of time*, beforehand, bold, brassy*, bright, cheeky*, cocky*, developed, early, flip*, flippant, forward, fresh, intelligent, mature, nervy, premature,… … New thesaurus
precocious — ► ADJECTIVE ▪ having developed certain abilities or inclinations at an earlier age than usual. DERIVATIVES precociously adverb precociousness noun precocity noun. ORIGIN from Latin praecox, from praecoquere ripen fully … English terms dictionary
Precocious — Unusually early development, whether it be of intellectual powers, speech, physical traits, etc. Precocious puberty is the unusually early development of secondary sexual features. The onset of sexual maturation in a girl before age 8 or a boy… … Medical dictionary
precocious — [[t]prɪko͟ʊʃəs[/t]] ADJ GRADED: usu ADJ n A precocious child is very clever, mature, or good at something, often in a way that you usually only expect to find in an adult. Margaret was always a precocious child... She burst on to the world tennis … English dictionary
precocious — adjective Etymology: Latin praecoc , praecox early ripening, precocious, from prae + coquere to cook more at cook Date: 1650 1. exceptionally early in development or occurrence < precocious puberty > 2. exhibiting mature qualities at an unusually … New Collegiate Dictionary
precocious — [17] Precocious means etymologically ‘pre cooked’. It was borrowed from Latin praecox, a derivative of the verb praecoquere ‘cook in advance’, which was a compound formed from the prefix prae ‘before’ and coquere ‘cook’ (a relative of English… … The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins
precocious — [17] Precocious means etymologically ‘pre cooked’. It was borrowed from Latin praecox, a derivative of the verb praecoquere ‘cook in advance’, which was a compound formed from the prefix prae ‘before’ and coquere ‘cook’ (a relative of English… … Word origins
