How to Use precarious in a Sentence

precarious

adjective
Definition of precariousnext
Synonyms for precariousnext
  • The strong wind almost knocked him off of his precarious perch on the edge of the cliff.
  • He earned a precarious livelihood by gambling.
  • The dry spell comes at a precarious time for the state's canopy.
    — Greg Stanley, Star Tribune, 26 June 2021
  • The top spot in the polls has been a precarious spot so far this season.
    — Carlos Silva Jr., USA TODAY, 11 Dec. 2019
  • For all of them, the stakes of precarious housing were high.
    — Samantha M. Shapiro, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2022
  • Big Sam then took them from the precarious lows of two points off ninth to the heady heights of eighth.
    — SI.com, 16 May 2018
  • That was the most precarious and unpredictable vote in the process.
    — Kevin Freking, ajc, 9 Dec. 2021
  • Many of the ledges, rocks and cliffs are precarious and slippery.
    — Andrea Reeves, The Enquirer, 16 May 2022
  • These five weeks are always the most precarious as the structure goes away for the players.
    — Drew Davison, star-telegram, 14 June 2018
  • The kitchens the food came from didn’t get less precarious to work in, if the restaurants stayed open at all.
    — Los Angeles Times, 12 Mar. 2021
  • That was such a precarious ruling—so easy to roll back.
    — Josh Fischman, Scientific American, 10 May 2023
  • Selling to both sides in a time of war can be a precarious position.
    — Dan Gallagher, WSJ, 16 May 2019
  • The death of her son left Olympias in a precarious position.
    — National Geographic, 3 Dec. 2019
  • Even when the deal was struck, the Met’s finances were precarious.
    — Michael Cooper, New York Times, 20 Sep. 2020
  • This makes this work precarious and puts a strain on the little income that women make.
    — Grace Natabaalo, Quartz, 7 Mar. 2022
  • And even in places where schools remain open, plans feel precarious.
    — Rachel Feintzeig, WSJ, 19 Oct. 2020
  • Auburn found itself in a precarious position yet again on the road.
    — Tom Green | Tgreen@al.com, al, 3 Mar. 2022
  • And to make the situation even more precarious, his third baby was on the way.
    — Tricia Despres, PEOPLE.com, 14 Oct. 2021
  • The new measures come as Italy faces its most precarious moment of the summer.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 17 Aug. 2020
  • If more sanctions are piled on top, things could get even more precarious.
    — Michael A. Cohen, The New Republic, 8 Apr. 2022
  • The magnitude of the problem, for gig workers alone, is a sign of how precarious these jobs are.
    — Eoin O'Carroll, The Christian Science Monitor, 9 June 2020
  • But this is a precarious moment, and agencies could erase them.
    — Clyde Wayne Crews Jr., Forbes, 16 Aug. 2022
  • This is a precarious time for his fourth album, Utopia, to land.
    — Vulture, 2 Aug. 2023
  • And the nation’s mental health is at a precarious level.
    — New York Times, 23 Dec. 2021
  • But the precarious nature of nonprofit work is no joke.
    — Bryan Reesman, Billboard, 5 Apr. 2019
  • There’s a lot of front-of-house success, but the bones of my business right now are so precarious.
    — Véronique Hyland, ELLE, 28 Mar. 2023
  • Look for trees that are dead or leaning in a precarious way and avoid placing your tent underneath them.
    — Christine Peterson, Outdoor Life, 13 Dec. 2023
  • Those who have made it to Bangladesh are still in precarious circumstances.
    — The Economist, 19 Oct. 2017
  • In the meantime, his legal bills had left him with precarious finances.
    — Hua Hsu, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2023
  • But any rebound is precarious, as the virus continues to spread.
    — Fortune, 1 Sep. 2020

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'precarious.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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