All 4 Uses of
precarious
in
A Prayer for Owen Meany
- It was Owen Meany who then blew his nose, which drew my attention to his pew, where Owen sat on a precarious stack of hymnals—in order to see over the Eastman family in general, and Uncle Alfred in particular.†
p. 121.3precarious = unsafe or unsure
- Rather, the intent gaze of our chief of police bore into the back of the head of Owen Meany, who sat precariously upon six or seven copies of The Pilgrim Hymnal; Owen tottered on the stack of hymnals, as if the police chief's gaze unbalanced him.†
p. 134.6precariously = in an unsafe or unsure manner
- The cow was three-legged—nearly as precarious as one of Mary Beth Baird's cows; it was propped against a rather menacing chicken that was almost half the cow's size, not unlike the proportions of Barb Wiggin's turtledoves.†
p. 187.0precarious = unsafe or unsure
- That was so typical of him; that in the midst of a precarious situation, he would suggest—as a subject for criticism—something far removed from himself!†
p. 404.2 *
Definition:
unsafe or in danger of getting worse -- especially in danger of falling