precariously

adverb

pre·​car·​i·​ous·​ly pri-ˈker-ē-əs-lē 

: in a precarious manner

These birds suspend their nests precariously among fine twigs …

—Michael Hansell

… the privilege of a tiny, precariously poised minority.

—Derek Bickerton

Waiters in white shirts and black vests roamed, trays balanced precariously but with utmost precision.

—Noah Charney

… it's now balancing precariously on the brink of extinction and has become the first-ever bumblebee to be declared endangered in the US.

—Laura Dennison

Examples of precariously in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

At its entrance, monumental basalt sculptures lean precariously against 14th-century walls, reversing the traditional role of the caryatid and quietly speaking to visitors. —Y-Jean Mun-Delsalle, Forbes.com, 10 June 2026

Her father had recently become homeless, and since leaving school she had been precariously employed. —Heidi Blake, New Yorker, 8 June 2026

Up high, fresh laundry quivers in the breeze like bunting, pegged precariously to twine stretched taut between windows. —Esme Nicholson, NPR, 3 June 2026

Over a century earlier sea otters, another key urchin predator, were extirpated by the fur trade, leaving the system precariously reliant on sea stars alone. —Tatjana Baleta, Time, 28 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1646, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for precariously

• hilariously
• vicariously
• variously