Precept
Alternative forms
- præcept obsolete
Origin
From Vulgar Latin praeceptum, form of praecipere ("to teach"), from Latin prae ("pre-") + capere ("take").
Full definition of precept
Noun
precept
(plural precepts)- A rule or principle, especially one governing personal conduct.
- 2006: Anthony Daniels (psychiatrist), The Gift of Language
- I need hardly point out that Pinker doesn't really believe anything of what he writes, at least if example is stronger evidence of belief than precept.
- 1891:
- He found a people in the extreme of barbarism living in caves, feeding upon the bloody flesh of animals they killed in hunting; he taught them many things, so that by his example, and for generations after he left them by his precepts, they advanced to high civilization.
- (legal) A written command, especially a demand for payment.
Verb
- (obsolete) To teach by precepts.