precise
adjective
pre·cise pri-ˈsīs 
1
: exactly or sharply defined or stated
2
: minutely exact
3
: strictly conforming to a pattern, standard, or convention
4
: distinguished from every other
at just that precise moment
preciseness noun
Synonyms
- accurate
- close
- delicate
- exact
- fine
- hairline
- mathematical
- pinpoint
- refined
- rigorous
- spot-on
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Be sure to take precise measurements before you cut the cloth. The dating of very old materials has become more precise with new instruments. The word has a very precise meaning. Can you find a more precise term than “good” to describe the movie? Could you be a little more precise about what happened? She is very precise in her work. See More
Recent Examples on the Web That scene — its quasi-pornographic detail no doubt responsible for the NC-17 rating — signals the precise moment when the film irreversibly careens off the rails. 
David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Sep. 2022 Since 2013, the organization has used its algorithm to analyze several data points, including forecast temperatures and historical precipitation to predict the precise moment when peak fall color will occur across the country, including Michigan. Elissa Robinson, Detroit Free Press, 2 Sep. 2022 Those airborne half-seconds are intensely precise — arms wheeling to redirect her shot, body glancing off contact from bigger players, hands adjusting too quickly for thought. Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2022 Odd smells, like earth or rotting matter, that nobody else could perceive, or a spasm of tremors and pain at the precise moment when disaster struck far away. Ian Beacock, The New Republic, 25 Aug. 2022 This suggests that without them, humans were able to evolve more precise vocal control, Tecumseh Fitch, one of the paper’s authors and a biologist at the University of Vienna in Austria, tells New Scientist’s Clare Wilson. Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 Aug. 2022 For him, that image would not have been here—the room in which the photograph was taken at the precise moment the photographer released the camera’s shutter. Merve Emre, The New Yorker, 25 July 2022 But percussionist Brian Prechtl remembers the precise moment when Heyward endeared himself to him personally. Mary Carole Mccauley, Baltimore Sun, 22 July 2022 This is the precise moment when the North Pole tilts closest to the sun, making the sun appear at its highest point in the sky of the year. Editors, USA TODAY, 21 June 2022 See More
David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Sep. 2022 Since 2013, the organization has used its algorithm to analyze several data points, including forecast temperatures and historical precipitation to predict the precise moment when peak fall color will occur across the country, including Michigan. Elissa Robinson, Detroit Free Press, 2 Sep. 2022 Those airborne half-seconds are intensely precise — arms wheeling to redirect her shot, body glancing off contact from bigger players, hands adjusting too quickly for thought. Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2022 Odd smells, like earth or rotting matter, that nobody else could perceive, or a spasm of tremors and pain at the precise moment when disaster struck far away. Ian Beacock, The New Republic, 25 Aug. 2022 This suggests that without them, humans were able to evolve more precise vocal control, Tecumseh Fitch, one of the paper’s authors and a biologist at the University of Vienna in Austria, tells New Scientist’s Clare Wilson. Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 Aug. 2022 For him, that image would not have been here—the room in which the photograph was taken at the precise moment the photographer released the camera’s shutter. Merve Emre, The New Yorker, 25 July 2022 But percussionist Brian Prechtl remembers the precise moment when Heyward endeared himself to him personally. Mary Carole Mccauley, Baltimore Sun, 22 July 2022 This is the precise moment when the North Pole tilts closest to the sun, making the sun appear at its highest point in the sky of the year. Editors, USA TODAY, 21 June 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Middle English, from Middle French precis, from Latin praecisus, past participle of praecidere to cut off, from prae- + caedere to cut
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Phrases Containing precise
Kids Definition
precise
adjective
pre·cise pri-ˈsīs
1
: exactly stated or explained
He gave precise instructions.
2
: very exact : accurate
The clay for glaze was mixed in precise proportions with water and wood ash. Linda Sue Park, A Single Shard
Linda Sue Park, A Single Shard3
: being exactly the one mentioned or indicated and no other
At that precise moment, the telephone rang.
preciseness
noun
as in accuracy
the quality or state of being very accurate the final result will be determined by the preciseness of the measurements Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- accuracy
- precision
- perfection
- exactness
- exactitude
- fidelity
- accurateness
- definiteness
- fineness
- rigor
- definitiveness
- truth
- veracity
- nicety
- rigorousness
- closeness
- correctness
- delicacy
- strictness
- ultraprecision
- rightness
- subtlety
- meticulousness
- fastidiousness
- carefulness
- determinacy
- definitude
- care
- persnicketiness
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- inaccuracy
- roughness
- imprecision
- approximation
- coarseness
- inexactness
- roundness
- impreciseness
- inexactitude
- carelessness
- incorrectness
- looseness
- wrongness
- falsity
- vagueness
- falseness
- indefiniteness
- guesswork