All 5 Uses
precipitate
in
Letter from a Birmingham Jail
(Auto-generated)
- it is wrong to urge an individual to cease his efforts to gain his basic constitutional rights because the quest may precipitate violence.
*precipitate = lead to (make it happen quickly)
- In your statement you assert that our actions, even though peaceful, must be condemned because they precipitate violence.†
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- Isn't this like condemning a robbed man because his possession of money precipitated the evil act of robbery?†
- Isn't this like condemning Socrates because his unswerving commitment to truth and his philosophical inquiries precipitated the act by the misguided populace in which they made him drink hemlock?†
- Isn't this like condemning Jesus because his unique God consciousness and never ceasing devotion to God's will precipitated the evil act of crucifixion?†
Definitions:
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(1)
(precipitate as in: a precipitate decision) acting with great haste -- often without adequate thought
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(2)
(precipitate as in: it precipitated a revolution) make something happen or to fall or move -- typically suddenly and often of something undesired
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(3)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) In chemistry, the verb form denotes separating solids from a solution; while the noun form references the solid particles in such a solution. It is from this sense that meteorologists refer to rain or snow as precipitation.
In classic literature, the word is sometimes used as a verb to indicated falling from a high spot such as "a false step could precipitate them down off the cliff," or throwing as in "If they attempt to precipitate themselves upon him...".