noun
precipitation
Sudden action taken without enough care.
His precipitation led him to sign without reading.
Etymology
The older word means falling or rushing headlong. The action sense turns that uncontrolled movement into a description of haste without sufficient thought.
More examples
- She regretted the precipitation of her decision.
- The old account criticized their reckless precipitation.
- A pause might have prevented such unfortunate precipitation.
Forms
precipitation
Similar words
- haste
- Haste is the common term; precipitation is a rare formal term stressing rash speed.
- rashness
- Rashness is insufficient consideration of consequences; precipitation particularly stresses acting too quickly.