precocious
adjective
pre·co·cious
| \ pri-ˈkō-shəs
\
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Definition of precocious
1
: exceptionally early in development or occurrence
precocious puberty
2
: exhibiting mature qualities at an unusually early age
a precocious child
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Other Words from precocious
precociously
adverb
precociousness
noun
precocity
\ pri-ˈkä-sə-tē
\
noun
\
noun
Synonyms & Antonyms for precocious
Synonyms
early, inopportune, premature, unseasonable, untimely
Antonyms
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Examples of precocious in a Sentence
But what has paleontologists agog is this googol-granddaddy's precocious attributes: most notably the relative flatness of its face, which is more modern-looking than skulls half its age.
— Fred Guterl, Newsweek, 22 July 2002
As a boy, I had caught eight-inch-long, juvenile "snapper" blues in Barnegat Bay and marveled at the uncommon strength and speed and the precocious attack instinct within their slender, silver bodies.
— Pete Bodo, New York Times, 8 July 2001
… Columbus was still sailing the ocean blue and American English, frisky and rambunctious as a precocious child, was as yet unborn.
— Sarah Lyall, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2000
… no longer certain that my blackness gave me precocious wisdom, or that I could outslick these folks …
— Lorene Cary, Black Ice, 1991
She was a precocious child who could read before she went to school.
A precocious musician, he was giving concerts when he was seven.
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Recent Examples on the Web
Ten years later, Marianne, with a precocious son (Joseph Engel) in tow, is back in Abel’s life. — Robert Abele, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Review: ‘A Faithful Man’ provides a sexy morsel of French romance," 30 Aug. 2019 Enter Bo, a Texan sports agent with baggage: A rock-star ex-wife and two precocious children. — Matthew J. Palm, orlandosentinel.com, "Cast charms in ‘How to Marry a Divorced Man’ | Review," 2 Aug. 2019 Growing up, Krantz was a precocious student at New York's exclusive Birch Wathen school, once describing herself as the youngest, smartest and shortest girl in her class. — Stefanie Dazio And Sandy Cohen, USA TODAY, "Steamy romance novelist Judith Krantz, author of 'Scruples,' dies at 91," 23 June 2019 Growing up, Krantz was a precocious student at New York's exclusive Birch Wathen school, once describing herself as the youngest, smartest and shortest girl in her class. — NBC News, "Steamy romance novelist Judith Krantz dies at 91," 23 June 2019 Growing up, Krantz was a precocious student at New York’s exclusive Birch Wathen school, once describing herself as the youngest, smartest and shortest girl in her class. — Washington Post, "Steamy romance novelist Judith Krantz dies at 91," 23 June 2019 Then along came another basketball prodigy, even more precocious than James. — Gary Peterson, The Mercury News, "LeBron James Jr. hits ridiculous trick shot, leaves calling card for Stephen Curry," 16 Aug. 2019 Gardner Smith, a precocious student of literature, read the same novelists as most aspiring writers in mid-century America: Hemingway and Faulkner, Proust and Dostoyevsky. — Adam Shatz, The New Yorker, "“How Does It Feel To Be a White Man?”: William Gardner Smith’s Exile in Paris," 11 Aug. 2019 Also cast were Eliana Sua as his precocious daughter, Samantha, Lori Pelenise Tuisano as his mother, Sefina, and Josh Mauga, John Tui and Reigns as his usos, or brothers. — chicagotribune.com, "Dwayne Johnson brought his Samoan roots to spinoff ‘Hobbs & Shaw’," 28 July 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'precocious.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for precocious
precocious
adjective
English Language Learners Definition of precocious
of a child
: having or showing the qualities or abilities of an adult at an unusually early age
See the full definition for precocious in the English Language Learners Dictionary
precocious
adjective
pre·co·cious
| \ pri-ˈkō-shəs
\
\
Kids Definition of precocious
: showing qualities or abilities of an adult at an unusually early age
precocious
adjective
pre·co·cious
| \ pri-ˈkō-shəs
\
\
Medical Definition of precocious
1
: exceptionally early in development or occurrence
precocious puberty
2
: exhibiting mature qualities at an unusually early age
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