PRECIPITATION

Noun13 lettersValid in our Scrabble word list
Unscramble PRECIPITATION

Quick definition

PRECIPITATION refers to any form of water falling from the atmosphere to Earth's surface, including rain, snow, sleet, and hail. It can also mean the act of causing a substance to separate from a solution.

Is PRECIPITATION a valid Scrabble word?

Yes. PRECIPITATION is in the Scrabble-style word list used by our tools and scores 19 points in Scrabble, 23 in Words With Friends and 22 in Wordfeud (base tile values, no board multipliers). Always check the dictionary your game uses (NWL, Collins or the WWF list) before playing.

LetterPRECIPITATIONTotal
Scrabble311313111111119
Words With Friends411414111111223
Wordfeud411414111111122

Definition and meaning

PRECIPITATION has two primary meanings. In meteorology, it refers to any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls from clouds due to gravitational pull. This includes rain, snow, sleet, hail, and drizzle. Precipitation is a vital component of the water cycle and essential for life on Earth. In chemistry, precipitation describes the process where a substance separates from a solution as a solid. This occurs when a chemical reaction produces an insoluble compound that settles out of the liquid mixture. The solid formed is called a precipitate. Types of atmospheric precipitation: Rain: Liquid water droplets larger than 0.5mm in diameter Snow: Ice crystals that form in clouds below freezing Sleet: Small ice pellets formed from freezing raindrops Hail: Balls of ice formed in severe thunderstorms Drizzle: Fine water droplets smaller than 0.5mm

PRECIPITATION in a sentence

  • The weather forecast predicted heavy precipitation throughout the weekend.
  • Adding silver nitrate to the solution caused immediate precipitation of silver chloride.
  • Annual precipitation levels have been declining in this region due to climate change.

Synonyms

  • RainfallWater falling as rain
  • MoistureAtmospheric water
  • DownpourHeavy precipitation
  • CondensationWater vapor becoming liquid

Antonyms

  • EvaporationWater becoming vapor
  • DroughtLack of precipitation
  • AridityExtreme dryness
  • DissolutionSolid dissolving (chemistry)

Word forms

  • Verb Form: precipitate
  • Adjective Form: precipitous
  • Adverb Form: precipitously

Origin

The word precipitation derives from Latin roots that vividly describe falling or throwing down. It comes from the Latin praecipitationem (nominative praecipitatio), meaning "a falling, headlong fall," from the past participle stem of praecipitare "to throw headlong, fall, be hasty." This Latin verb combines prae- ("before, forth") + caput (genitive capitis, "head"), literally meaning "head first" or "headlong." The meteorological sense emerged in English in the 1670s, originally referring to the "act of precipitating moisture." The chemical meaning appeared slightly later, around 1660, describing the process of a substance separating from solution. Both uses retain the core concept of something falling or being thrown down - whether water from the sky or solids from a liquid.

Anagrams, hooks and words inside PRECIPITATION

Anagrams: no other word uses exactly the letters of PRECIPITATION.

Hooks: no front hooks; back PRECIPITATIONS.

Words inside PRECIPITATION: 794 shorter words can be made from these letters – highest scoring: PRECIPITANTPRECIPITINCREPITATIONPANTROPICPRINCIPIAANTIPOETICPANOPTICPEPTONICPRINCIPEPRINCIPIPROPITIATEAPPOINTER. See all words from PRECIPITATION.

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