/ ˈpresəpɪs; NAmE / noun
a very steep side of a high cliff , mountain or rock :
( figurative )
The country was now on the edge of a precipice (= very close to disaster) .
—see also precipitous
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WORD ORIGIN
late 16th cent. (denoting a headlong fall): from French précipice or Latin praecipitium abrupt descent, from praeceps , praecip(it)- steep, headlong.