Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Nearby Words
Definition of precession - 3 dictionary results
Shop Dell's Huge Sale Now
Don't Get Trampled - Get Sales! Dell™ Black Friday 11/23 - 11/30.
www.Dell.com/BlackFridaySale

pre⋅ces⋅sion

  [pree-sesh-uhn]
Use precession in a Sentence
–noun
1. the act or fact of preceding; precedence.
2. Mechanics. the motion of the rotation axis of a rigid body, as a spinning top, when a disturbing torque is applied while the body is rotating such that the rotation axis describes a cone, with the vertical through the vertex of the body as axis of the cone, and the motion of the rotating body is perpendicular to the direction of the torque.
3. Astronomy.
a. the slow, conical motion of the earth's axis of rotation, caused by the gravitational attraction of the sun and moon, and, to a smaller extent, of the planets, on the equatorial bulge of the earth.
b. precession of the equinoxes.
Origin:
1300–50; < LL praecessiōn- (s. of praecessiō) a going before, advance, equiv. to L praecess(us) (ptp. of praecēdere to precede ) + -iōn- -ion; see cession

Related forms:
pre⋅ces⋅sion⋅al, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To precession
Shop Dell's Huge Sale Now
Don't Get Trampled - Get Sales! Dell™ Black Friday 11/23 - 11/30.
www.Dell.com/BlackFridaySale
pre·ces·sion   (prē-sěsh'ən)   
n.  

  1. The act or state of preceding; precedence.

  2. Physics The motion of the axis of a spinning body, such as the wobble of a spinning top, when there is an external force acting on the axis.

  3. Astronomy

    1. Precession of the equinoxes.

    2. A slow gyration of the earth's axis around the pole of the ecliptic, caused mainly by the gravitational pull of the sun, moon, and other planets on the earth's equatorial bulge.


[Late Latin praecessiō, praecessiōn-, from Latin praecessus, past participle of praecēdere, to go before; see precede.]
pre·ces'sion·al adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

precession 
1594, from L.L. præcissionem (nom. præcissio) "a coming before," from L. præcessus, pp. of præcedere (see precede). Originally used of calculations of the equinoxes, which come slightly earlier each year.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Search another word or see precession on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way