precocious

adjective

pri-ˈkō-shəs How to pronounce precocious (audio)
Definition of precociousnext
as in early
occurring before the usual or expected time a precocious baldness makes him look older than he really is

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of precocious The precocious 25-year-old became a workout pal with James post-Covid 19 pandemic, the two bonding on their insatiable desire to do the work. — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 28 Sep. 2026 In the hit 1996 film, Lipnicki played Ray, the exceptionally precocious son of Renée Zellweger’s Dorothy, a single mom and Cruise’s love interest. — Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 28 Sep. 2026 Navigating the rocky road from precocious kid-commercial actor to an adult movie star isn’t easy, but Gisondo possesses a maturity and gravitas that belies his youthful appearance. — Chris Murphy, Vanity Fair, 24 Sep. 2026 There have been instances before of Kostoulas’ precocious talent. — Andy Naylor, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for precocious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for precocious
  1. early
  2. premature
  3. unexpected
  4. sudden
  5. untimely
Adjective
  • In August 2023, Bangs offered LaGrone an earlier plea agreement under which he would have been sentenced to 25 years in prison, according to a record in the district clerk’s file.
    — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Staying invested The survey, conducted between late August and early September, included 2,029 American investors with at least $10,000 in investable assets and 538 financial advisers and financial professionals.
    — Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of early
Adjective
  • Ramirez, who was born and raised in La Cañada Flintridge and worked at the resort in the 1990s, said the news release was premature.
    — Lisa Boone, Los Angeles Times, 24 Oct. 2026
  • During pregnancy, invasive listeriosis can cause miscarriages, stillbirths, premature delivery, or life-threatening infection in newborns.
    — Tom Gavin, EverydayHealth.com, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of premature
Adjective
  • Prince Harry is opening up about his and wife Meghan Markle’s unexpected decision earlier this year to move back to the United Kingdom years after their dramatic fallout with the British royal family.
    — Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2026
  • The tropical getaway also included some unexpected entertainment.
    — Danielle Minnetian, FOXNews.com, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of unexpected
Adjective
  • This is not a sudden shift in attitude to defend a controversial CBA.
    — Lev Akabas, Sportico.com, 20 Oct. 2026
  • In addition to low blood oxygen levels and low blood pressure, a pulmonary embolism can affect the heart, causing a fast or irregular heart rate, right-sided heart failure or sudden cardiac arrest.
    — Jen Christensen, CNN Money, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of sudden
Adjective
  • Senna holds an immortal presence in modern Formula 1 for the manner of his racing—ferocious, endowed with grace—and for his untimely death.
    — Sam Knight, New Yorker, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The Bulldogs’ streak of 53 consecutive wins against unranked teams came to an end with a 27-24 loss keyed by three Gunner Stockton turnovers, untimely penalties and a fresh Tigers team coming off a bye week that won at the line of scrimmage.
    — Mike Griffith, AJC.com, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of untimely

Browse Nearby Words

precocial
precocious
precociously
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Precocious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/precocious. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of milieu

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All