precipitator

English

Etymology

Latin praecipitator (“an overthrower”); equivalent to precipitate +‎ -or.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɹɪˈsɪpɪˌteɪtə(ɹ)/

• Audio (AU)

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Noun

precipitator (plural precipitators)

1. One who or that which precipitates (causes something to happen or urges it on with vehemence or rashness).

   Synonyms: agent, author, cause

   • 1675, Henry Hammond, Sermons Preached by […] Henry Hammond‎^[1], London: Robert Pawlet, Sermon 5, p. 65:

     […] those of that sect […] that call’d themselves by that name of Zealots, and withal, took upon them to be the saviours and preservers of the City, but as it prov’d, the hastners & precipitators of the destruction of that Kingdom […]

   • 1918, Harold Goddard, chapter 3, in Morale‎^[2], New York: George H. Doran, page 58:

     Even the most wanton precipitators of war always try to give it, in the eyes of the common people, a defensive character.

   • 1975 April 11, Elmo R. Zumwalt, Jr., “Uncle Sam: No More Mr. Nice Guy”, in The New York Times:

     Wherever one looks the rate of change on the international scene has achieved dizzying proportions, often with ominous overtones for United States interests. What is frequently overlooked, however, is that American behavior may be one of the greatest precipitators of this growing instability.

   • 2002, Wayne F. Cascio, chapter 3, in Responsible Restructuring‎^[3], San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler, page 34:

     […] the most common precipitator of workplace violence is a layoff or firing.

2. A person who, or device that, carries out precipitation.
3. An apparatus which removes dust particles from gases by electrostatic precipitation.

Derived terms

• electrostatic precipitator