English → Latin
“precaution” in Latin
cautiōprecaution, caution; stipulation, proviso, exceptionprōvidusprophetic; provident, prudent, circumspect, cautiouscaveōto take precautions, beware, take care; to guard against, attend to a thing for a person, provide; to guard against, to incōnsultusrash, ill-advised; unconsulted
The English word precaution itself goes back to Latin caveō, through praecautio.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
precaution
cautio: provisio animi (Cic., Or., 56). That uses precaution, providus, cautus: that does not use precaution, inconsultus: to use precaution, cautionem adhibere alicui rei or in re; caute versari in re; caute tractare aliquid: without precaution, inconsulte.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for precaution?
- The usual Latin words for “precaution” are cautiō, prōvidus, caveō; also incōnsultus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.