precise

«precise» in Mova's school dictionary: Exact and correct in every small detail — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 1 sentence of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

adjective (precise, more precise, most precise)

meaning for a pupil

1) Exact and correct in every small detail. tree →

2) Very careful and accurate in doing things. tree →

3) Used to stress that you mean exactly this one: «at that precise moment». tree →

sense in the lessons

In maths and science, precise measurements give exact numbers with the right units; pupils are asked to be precise with a ruler or a thermometer. In writing, precise words make meaning clear. Phrases: «to be precise», «at that precise moment», «precise instructions».

examples

• Please give a precise answer, not a guess. tree →
• The recipe needs precise amounts of flour and sugar. tree →
• The line is 7.4 centimetres long, to be precise. tree →
• At that precise moment, the bell rang. tree →
• A surgeon must be very precise. tree →
• Use precise words to describe your character. tree →
• The clock gives the precise time. tree →
• Those were her precise words, so there can be no denying that it was she who first tempted him. tree →

note

Adverb «precisely», noun «precision». In science, «precise» (repeated measurements close together) is different from «accurate» (close to the true value). In maths, a precise answer may need decimals; «round to one decimal place» makes it less precise. Do not confuse with «concise» (short).

In the corpora

• Precise words give a clearer picture than general words like nice, good, big or bad.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «precise» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.