praecipito

praecĭpĭto, āvi, ātum, 1, v. a. and n. [praeceps], to throw or cast down headlong, to precipitate (class.; syn.. deicio, deturbo, proruo).

I.

Act.

A.

Lit.:

pilae in mare praecipitatae,

Nep. Alcib. 6 fin.:

truncas rupes in tecta domosque,

Stat. Th. 10, 881: currum scopulis, hurl or dash against, Ov. M. 15, 518:

pinus,

Stat. Achill. 2, 546.— Freq. with se or pass. in middle sense:

se e Leucade,

Cic. Tusc. 4, 18, 41:

se a tecto,

Sen. Ep. 4, 4:

se de turri,

Liv. 23, 37:

sese in fossas,

Caes. B. C. 3, 69:

praecipitasse se quosdam constabat (sc. de muro),

threw themselves from the wall, Liv. 23, 19, 6; Hor. S. 2, 3, 277:

plerique semet ipsi praecipitaverunt,

Liv. 21, 14, 1:

se in Tiberim,

id. 4, 12, 11; Caes. B. G. 4, 15; Curt. 4, 16, 16; 6, 6, 32;

Auct. B. Alex. 18: ubi Nilus praecipitans se fragore auditum accolis aufert,

Plin. 6, 29, 35, § 118:

praecipitare volens etiam pulcherrima,

to throw overboard, Juv. 12, 38.—Mid.:

cum alii super vallum praecipitarentur,

threw themselves down, Sall. J. 58, 6; Ov. F. 4, 164; id. M. 7, 760; 11, 556:

lux Praecipitatur aquis,

sinks in the ocean, sets, id. ib. 4, 92; cf.:

hac te praecipitato,

run this way, for life! Ter. Ad. 4, 2, 36.— Absol.: si quando iis (parvis) ludentes minamur, praecipitaturos alicunde, extimescunt, that we will throw them down from any place (= nos eos dejecturos), Cic. Fin. 5, 11, 31.—

2.

Transf., in gen., to bend a thing down:

vitem,

Cato, R. R. 32, 2:

partem (vitis),

Col. 4, 20, 4:

palmitem,

id. 5, 6, 33.—

B.

Trop.

1.

To throw, hurl, or cast down, to precipitate: [p. 1414] praecipitari ex altissimo dignitatis gradu, Cic. Dom. 37, 98; cf.:

in tanta mala praeeipitatus ex patrio regno,

Sall. J. 14, 23.— Esp. with reflex. pron.:

semet ipse praecipitare,

to hasten to ruin, destroy one's self, Sall. J. 41, 9:

se in exitium,

Cels. 3, 21:

se in insidias,

Liv. 3, 18, 7 dub. (Madv. omits se):

furor iraque mentem Praecipitant,

carry away, urge onward, sway violently, Verg. A. 2, 317:

spem festinando praecipitare,

Ov. P. 3, 1, 140:

in senectam praecipitare,

to cause to grow old prematurely, Plin. 17, 12, 19, § 94:

quosdam praecipitat subjecta potentia magnae Invidiae,

Juv. 10, 56.—In pass., Cic. Rep. 2, 23, 43: nox praecipitata, declining, i. e. drawing to a close, Ov. Tr. 1, 3, 47; cf.: aetas praecipitata (opp. adulescens), declining age, Mat. ap. Cic. Fam. 11, 28, 5.—

2.

To hasten, hurry a thing (mostly poet. and in post-Aug. prose):

quae Praecipitent obitum,

hasten their setting, Cic. Arat. 349:

vindemiam,

Col. 3, 21, 10:

consulta viri,

Sil. 3, 166:

ne praecipitetur editio,

Quint. Ep. ad Tryph. 2:

consilia raptim praecipitata,

precipitate, Liv. 31, 32.— Poet.:

moras,

i. e. exchange delay for haste, Verg. A. 8, 443; 12, 699:

Tiphyn pelago parari praecipitat,

Val. Fl. 2, 390:

cursum,

Juv. 15, 78.—

3.

With acc. and inf., to hasten, press, urge to do any thing ( poet. ):

dare tempus Praecipitant curae,

Verg. A. 11, 3:

si praecipitant miserum cognoscere curae,

Stat. Th. 1, 679. —

II.

Neutr., to hasten or rush down, to throw one's self down, rush headlong, sink rapidly, to fall (class., but only of involuntary falling; cf. I. A.).

A.

Lit.:

praecipitare istuc quidem est, non descendere,

Cic. N. D. 1, 32, 90:

de montibus altis ad terram,

Lucr. 4, 1021:

ubi Nilus praecipitat ex altissimis montibus,

Cic. Rep. 6, 18, 19; cf.:

Fibrenus... statim praecipitat in Lirem,

id. Leg. 2, 3, 6: and:

in amni praecipitante,

id. de Or. 3, 48, 186:

nimbi In vada praecipitant,

Verg. A. 9, 670; 11, 617:

in fossam,

Liv. 25, 11, 6; 7, 6, 9; 38, 2, 14;

39, 2, 3: in insidias,

id. 2, 51; 5, 18; Plin. 11, 24, 28, § 82:

non fugis hinc praeceps, dum praecipitare potestas?

Verg. A. 4, 565:

sol praecipitans,

Cic. de Or. 3, 55, 209:

jam nox caelo Praecipitat,

is sinking, draws to a close, Verg. A. 2, 9:

hiems jam praecipitaverat,

had closed, come to an end, Caes. B. C. 3, 25.—

B.

Trop.

1.

To fall down, to fall, rush, or sink to ruin:

qui in amorem Praecipitavit, pejus perit quam si saxo saliat,

Plaut. Trin. 2, 1, 31:

praecipitantes impellere, certe est inhumanum,

Cic. Rab. Post. 1, 2; so,

praecipitantem impellamus,

id. Clu. 26, 70:

ubi non subest, quo praecipitet ac decidat,

he may tumble down, id. Rep. 1, 45, 69:

praecipitante re publicā,

id. Sull. 1, 1; cf. id. ib. 31, 87; and:

cum ad Cannas praecipitasset Romana res,

Liv. 27, 40:

ad exitium praecipitans,

Cic. Att. 3, 15, 7.—

2.

To be too hasty:

cum vitiosum sit adsentiri quicquam aut falsum aut incognitum, sustinenda est potius omnis adsensio, ne praecipitet, si temere processerit,

Cic. Ac. 2, 21, 68.—Hence, praecĭpĭ-tanter, adv., hastily, precipitately:

agens mannos ad villam,

Lucr. 3, 1063.