precise

Etymology

From Middle French précis, from Latin praecisus, perfect passive participle of praecīdere, from prae- (“before, in front”) + caedere (“cut; strike”), cognate with English hit. Related to English incise. Doublet of précis.

adj

1. exact, accurate
   A memory is "precise" when the occurrences that would verify it are narrowly circumscribed: for instance, "I met Jones" is precise as compared to "I met a man." A memory is "accurate" when it is both precise and true, i.e. in the above instance, if it was Jones I met. 1921, Bertrand Russell, The Analysis of Mind
   Individually, some of these definitions fall into the common definitional trap of being overly precise. 2018, James Lambert, “A multitude of ‘lishes’: The nomenclature of hybridity”, in English World-Wide, page 7
2. (sciences, of experimental results) consistent, clustered close together, agreeing with each other (this does not mean that they cluster near the true, correct, or accurate value)
   Risk is everywhere.[…]For each [kind] there is a frighteningly precise measurement of just how likely it is to jump from the shadows and get you. “The Norm Chronicles”[…]aims to help data-phobes find their way through this blizzard of risks. 2013-06-22, “Snakes and ladders”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8841, page 76
3. adhering too much to rules; prim or punctilious

verb

1. (nonstandard, non-native speakers' English or European Union documents, transitive) To make or render precise; to specify.
   This proposal for a new basic regulation is justified because there is a need to precise the objectives of the CFP. 2011, Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on the Common Fisheries Policy