Main Entry: pre·ces·sion

Pronunciation: \prē-ˈse-shən\

Function: noun

Etymology: New Latin praecession-, praecessio, from Medieval Latin, act of preceding, from Latin praecedere to precede

Date: 1879

: a comparatively slow gyration of the rotation axis of a spinning body about another line intersecting it so as to describe a cone

— pre·ces·sion·al \-ˈsesh-nəl, -ˈse-shə-n^əl\ adjective