chronic

[ kron-ik ]
See synonyms for chronic on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. constant; habitual; inveterate: a chronic liar.

  2. continuing a long time or recurring frequently: a chronic state of civil war.

  1. having long had a disease, habit, weakness, or the like: a chronic invalid.

  2. (of a disease) having long duration (opposed to acute).

noun
  1. Slang. cronic.

Origin of chronic

1
First recorded in 1595–1605; from Latin chronicus, from Greek chronikós, equivalent to chrón(os) “time” + -ikos -ic
  • Rarely chron·i·cal [kron-i-kuhl] /ˈkrɒn ɪ kəl/ .

Other words for chronic

Other words from chronic

  • chron·i·cal·ly, adverb
  • chro·nic·i·ty [kro-nis-i-tee], /krɒˈnɪs ɪ ti/, noun
  • non·chron·ic, adjective
  • non·chron·i·cal, adjective
  • sub·chron·ic, adjective
  • sub·chron·i·cal, adjective
  • un·chron·ic, adjective

Words that may be confused with chronic

Words Nearby chronic

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use chronic in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for chronic

chronic

/ (ˈkrɒnɪk) /


adjective
  1. continuing for a long time; constantly recurring

  2. (of a disease) developing slowly, or of long duration: Compare acute (def. 7)

  1. inveterate; habitual: a chronic smoker

  2. informal

    • very bad: the play was chronic

    • very serious: he left her in a chronic condition

Origin of chronic

1
C15: from Latin chronicus relating to time, from Greek khronikos, from khronos time

Derived forms of chronic

  • chronically, adverb
  • chronicity (krɒˈnɪsɪtɪ), noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for chronic

chronic

[ krŏnĭk ]


  1. Relating to an illness or medical condition that is characterized by long duration or frequent recurrence. Diabetes and hypertension are chronic diseases. Compare acute.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.