Word of the Day

: September 2, 2008

precocious

adjective prih-KOH-shus

What It Means

1 : exceptionally early in development or occurrence

2 : exhibiting mature qualities at an unusually early age

precocious in Context

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a precocious child who, by the age of five, was already composing his first musical pieces.

Did You Know?

"Precocious" got started in Latin when the prefix "prae-," meaning "ahead of," was combined with the verb "coquere," meaning "to cook" or "to ripen," to form the adjective "praecox," which means "early ripening" or "premature." By 1650, English speakers had turned "praecox" into "precocious" and were using it especially of plants that produced blossoms before their leaves came out. By the 1670s, "precocious" was also being used to describe humans who developed skills or talents before others typically did.