precarious

Từ điển Oxford Advanced Learner 8th

pre·car·ious BrE [prɪˈkeəriəs] NAmE [prɪˈkerəriəs] adjective
1. (of a situation)not safe or certain; dangerous
•He earned a precarious living as an artist.
•The museum is in a financially precarious position.
•The world is a precarious and unstable place.
2. likely to fall or cause sb to fall
•That ladder looks very precarious.
•The path down to the beach is very precarious in wet weather.
Derived Words: ↑precariously ▪ ↑precariousness

Word Origin:
[precarious precariously precariousness] mid 17th cent.: from Latin precarius ‘obtained by entreaty’ (from prex, prec- ‘prayer’) + ↑-ous.

Example Bank:
•They have a somewhat precarious existence.

• Từ đồng nghĩa / Synonyms:
  shaky, parlous, perilous, touch-and-go, unstable