precarious

Definitions

prec (pray, beg) + -arious (adj.) = "held by begging." In Roman law, precarius land was occupied only because the owner, when asked (precārī), chose to allow it — no contract, revocable the instant goodwill ended. Something you keep purely on another's favor can be snatched back at any moment, so the word distilled down to the pure feeling of that: unstable, insecure, liable to collapse. Picture a tenant living entirely on a landlord's whim — that's the picture inside precarious.

Why It Means This

Precarious comes from Latin precarius, "obtained by prayer or request." The original idea was a right or possession you held only because someone else granted it as a favor — and a favor can be withdrawn. That built-in insecurity is why the word no longer needs any mention of asking: today it just means shaky, fragile, one nudge away from disaster. A precarious ladder, a precarious peace, a precarious job — all share the sense of resting on nothing solid.

Common Collocations

• 1.precarious situation危险处境
• 2.precarious balance岌岌可危的平衡
• 3.precarious position不稳固的处境
• 4.precarious employment不稳定就业
• 5.precarious existence朝不保夕的生存状态

Example Sentences

• 1.

  The climber clung to a precarious ledge, hundreds of meters above the valley.

• 2.

  Millions of gig workers earn a precarious living with no stable contract.

• 3.

  After the scandal, the minister's position became increasingly precarious.

• 4.

  The ceasefire held, but everyone knew the peace was precarious.

Easily Confused

precarious vs. perilous: both signal danger, but precarious stresses instability — something poised to collapse or fall (a precarious balance, a precarious job). Perilous stresses active risk of harm along the way (a perilous journey, a perilous crossing). If the danger is that it might topple or fall apart, use precarious; if the danger is that you might get hurt going through it, use perilous.

Synonym Comparison