What does precocious mean?
Word: Precocious
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Precocious means showing ability or knowledge far beyond what is usual for such a young age.
How do you spell precocious?
Syllables: pre - co - cious
Tricky part: The sh sound before the ending is the trap. Pupils write ti or sh, but here it is spelt ci.
Watch out for: precotious, precoshus, precocous
Memory tip: A precocious cook makes something delicious. Delicious shows you how the sh sound is written.
Precocious in a sentence
Example 1: The precocious girl from Nagpur was reading novels at five.
Example 2: R Praggnanandhaa was a precocious chess talent who became a grandmaster at twelve.
Example 3: Even as a precocious toddler, Anil loved taking clocks apart.
Fun Fact
It first meant ripening early and comes from a Latin word once used of fruit. The word apricot, an early-ripening fruit, grew from the same root.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell-o-Spell
Only one word in the list is correct. Choose the meaning of that word.
1. innocant 2. precocious 3. adolesent 4. impulsiv
a) having done nothing wrong
b) a young person who is growing into an adult
c) acting suddenly without stopping to think
d) ahead of other children in skill or learning
Show answer
d) ahead of other children in skill or learning. Adolescent, innocent and impulsive would be correct; the list gets each one wrong.
Word Connection
Choose the synonym of the word precocious as used in the sentence:
At four, the precocious Aryan could name every planet and most of their moons.
a) advanced
b) ordinary
c) timid
d) restless
Show answer
a) advanced. Aryan knows far more than most four-year-olds do.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the word in the sentence and choose it:
The pucsorceio young pianist gave her first public concert at the age of seven.
a) precocious
b) ferocious
c) capacious
d) pretentious
Show answer
a) precocious. Two c's, two o's and a p, with no t, f or a.
Word Cookie
Insert the correct pair of letters to form a word:
pr_c_cious
a) e, o
b) i, o
c) e, a
d) a, o
Show answer
a) e, o. It starts with pre, meaning before, and the next vowel is the o of cocoa.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which child could fairly be called precocious?
a) a twelve-year-old who is tall for his age
b) a six-year-old who sleeps until nine
c) an eight-year-old who solves Class 10 maths
d) a ten-year-old who enjoys playing cricket
Show answer
c) an eight-year-old who solves Class 10 maths
2. Why can this word sometimes sound like mild criticism of a child?
a) It may suggest the child talks too softly
b) It may suggest the child acts too grown-up
c) It may suggest the child dislikes schoolwork
d) It may suggest the child always arrives late
Show answer
b) It may suggest the child acts too grown-up
