precarious
very unstable and uncertain
TRANSLATION
precarious = gefährdet, unsicher, heikel, labil, prekär, bedenklich precarious conclusion = unsicherer Schluss precarious position = gefährliche Position a precarious financial situation = eine heikle finanzielle Lage (woerterbuch.info) --- GOOGLE INDEX precarious: approximately 6,000,000 hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
Mass exoduses (of refugees) irrevocably strain the PRECARIOUS balance between environmental preservation and the immediate need to sustain life, forcing local ecosystems to exceed their carrying capacity.
(United Nations Chronicle online edition)
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All progress is PRECARIOUS, and the solution of one problem brings us face to face with another problem.
- Martin Luther King Jr. , American civil rights activist
(United Nations Chronicle online edition)
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All progress is PRECARIOUS, and the solution of one problem brings us face to face with another problem.
- Martin Luther King Jr. , American civil rights activist
Did you
know?
precarious
adjective
- not securely held or in position; likely to fall.
- dependent on chance; uncertain.
(Oxford English Dictionary)
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WORD ORIGIN
Precarious, which derives from the Latin precarius meaning obtained by asking or praying, was a legal term in the mid-1600s that meant "held by the favour of another". This eventually led to the current sense of risky, dangerous, uncertain.
If you believe most of what you read in the newspapers or hear on the nightly news, we live in precarious times. For many of us though, such thoughts are far removed as we drive to work, get the kids off to school or wait in line at the supermarket. But for others, precarious situations are a way of life, a way to make a living or a path to thrills and excitement. Or maybe all of the above. Take Philippe Petit for instance.
Petit was a French performance artist who regularly performed in Washington Square Park in New York City in the early 1970s. He made his living as a tightrope walker, unicyclist, juggler and magician. While sitting in his dentist's office in Paris, he came upon an article describing the construction of the World Trade Center towers. Thus inspired, he concocted a plan to tightrope between two of the largest buildings in the world.
For the next six years, Petit patiently nurtured his dream, perfecting his skills as a high-wire artist and learning everything he could about the World Trade Center. In January 1974, now twenty-four years old, he flew to New York City to put his daring plan into action. After months scouting the towers, including posing as a journalist to interview Port Authority executive Guy Tozzoli, he set to work on the evening of Tuesday, August 6.
While one group of colleagues made its way up the north tower, Petit and two friends slipped up to the top of the south tower, carrying their concealed equipment, including a disassembled balancing pole, wire for rigging, 250 feet of one-inch braided steel cable, and a bow and arrow. It took all night to complete the rigging, securing the steel cable a quarter of a mile in the sky across the 130-foot gap separating the towers. Wall Street was just beginning to come to life when, at a little past seven on the morning of August 7, 1974, Philippe Petit stepped onto the wire stretched out across the void.
The construction of the towers was beset with financial difficulties. By this time, public opinion had turned against the billion-dollar project. However, Petit's stunt and subsequent arrest made headlines around the world and did more than anything to change the public's perception. The towers became a New York landmark and a symbol of the city's global financial influence until they were toppled by the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
(sources: Wikipedia, PBS, Online Etymology Dictionary)
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SYNONYMS
ambiguous, borderline, chancy, contingent, dangerous, delicate, dicey, hairy, hazardous, iffy, insecure, perilous, problematic, risky, rocky, shaky, slippery, ticklish, touchy, tricky, uncertain, unhealthy, unreliable, unsafe, unsettled, unstable, unsteady, unsure
(Roget's New Millennium™ Thesaurus)
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ANTONYMS
safe, secure
(Roget's New Millennium™ Thesaurus)
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IMPRESS YOUR FRIENDS TODAY
say something like:
"We spent most of the afternoon with our largest customer. The relationship has been precarious for several months, but I think the meeting had a positive impact."
adjective
- not securely held or in position; likely to fall.
- dependent on chance; uncertain.
(Oxford English Dictionary)
---
WORD ORIGIN
Precarious, which derives from the Latin precarius meaning obtained by asking or praying, was a legal term in the mid-1600s that meant "held by the favour of another". This eventually led to the current sense of risky, dangerous, uncertain.
If you believe most of what you read in the newspapers or hear on the nightly news, we live in precarious times. For many of us though, such thoughts are far removed as we drive to work, get the kids off to school or wait in line at the supermarket. But for others, precarious situations are a way of life, a way to make a living or a path to thrills and excitement. Or maybe all of the above. Take Philippe Petit for instance.
Petit was a French performance artist who regularly performed in Washington Square Park in New York City in the early 1970s. He made his living as a tightrope walker, unicyclist, juggler and magician. While sitting in his dentist's office in Paris, he came upon an article describing the construction of the World Trade Center towers. Thus inspired, he concocted a plan to tightrope between two of the largest buildings in the world.
For the next six years, Petit patiently nurtured his dream, perfecting his skills as a high-wire artist and learning everything he could about the World Trade Center. In January 1974, now twenty-four years old, he flew to New York City to put his daring plan into action. After months scouting the towers, including posing as a journalist to interview Port Authority executive Guy Tozzoli, he set to work on the evening of Tuesday, August 6.
While one group of colleagues made its way up the north tower, Petit and two friends slipped up to the top of the south tower, carrying their concealed equipment, including a disassembled balancing pole, wire for rigging, 250 feet of one-inch braided steel cable, and a bow and arrow. It took all night to complete the rigging, securing the steel cable a quarter of a mile in the sky across the 130-foot gap separating the towers. Wall Street was just beginning to come to life when, at a little past seven on the morning of August 7, 1974, Philippe Petit stepped onto the wire stretched out across the void.
The construction of the towers was beset with financial difficulties. By this time, public opinion had turned against the billion-dollar project. However, Petit's stunt and subsequent arrest made headlines around the world and did more than anything to change the public's perception. The towers became a New York landmark and a symbol of the city's global financial influence until they were toppled by the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
(sources: Wikipedia, PBS, Online Etymology Dictionary)
---
SYNONYMS
ambiguous, borderline, chancy, contingent, dangerous, delicate, dicey, hairy, hazardous, iffy, insecure, perilous, problematic, risky, rocky, shaky, slippery, ticklish, touchy, tricky, uncertain, unhealthy, unreliable, unsafe, unsettled, unstable, unsteady, unsure
(Roget's New Millennium™ Thesaurus)
---
ANTONYMS
safe, secure
(Roget's New Millennium™ Thesaurus)
---
IMPRESS YOUR FRIENDS TODAY
say something like:
"We spent most of the afternoon with our largest customer. The relationship has been precarious for several months, but I think the meeting had a positive impact."
