/pri sip'i tay"sheuhn/ , n.
1. the act of precipitating; state of being precipitated.
2. a casting down or falling headlong.
3. a hastening or hurrying in movement, procedure, or action.
4. sudden haste.
5. unwise or rash rapidity.
6. Meteorol.
a. falling products of condensation in the atmosphere, as rain, snow, or hail.
b. the amount of rain, snow, hail, etc., that has fallen at a given place within a given period, usually expressed in inches or centimeters of water.
7. Chem. , Physics. the precipitating of a substance from a solution.
[ 1425-75; late ME praecipitation- (s. of praecipitatio ) a falling headlong. See PRECIPITATE, -ION ]