critical
inclined to find fault or to judge with severity, often too readily: Parents who are too critical make their children anxious.
involving criticism, or skillful judgment as to truth, merit, etc.:The article provides a critical analysis of the Gulf War.
occupied with or skilled in criticism: She was one of the great critical journalists of the 20th century.
of or relating to critics or criticism, especially of literature, film, music, etc.: Critical appreciation of this author’s work has peaked in recent years.
providing textual variants, proposed emendations, etc.: The library has a new critical edition of Chaucer.
of the nature of a crisis; threatening a seriously bad outcome; grave: There was a critical shortage of food.
of decisive importance with respect to the outcome; crucial: The nation is facing a critical moment in its history.
essential; indispensable: Cocoa butter is a critical ingredient in chocolate.
Medicine/Medical. having unstable and abnormal vital signs and other unfavorable indicators, as loss of appetite, poor mobility, or unconsciousness: The patient has been upgraded from critical to stable.
Physics.
pertaining to a state, value, or quantity at which one or more properties of a substance or system undergo a change: The critical temperature of benzene is 289° C.
(of fissionable material) having enough mass to sustain a chain reaction: They told us about a lab where some plutonium went critical.
Origin of critical
1Other words for critical
Other words from critical
- crit·i·cal·ly, adverb
- crit·i·cal·i·ty [-krit-i-kal-i-tee], / ˌkrɪt ɪˈkæl ɪ ti/, crit·i·cal·ness, noun
- an·ti·crit·i·cal, adjective
- non·crit·i·cal, adjective
- pseu·do·crit·i·cal, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use critical in a sentence
Gyp, deeply impressed by the criticalness of the situation, summoned a meeting of the Ravens.
Highacres | Jane AbbottI could better now realize our position than when at work, and the criticalness of it struck and awed me like a revelation.
The Wreck of the Grosvenor, Volume 3 of 3 | William Clark RussellHe was conducted to a chamber, and, the criticalness of his case requiring unusual attention, I spent the night at his bedside.
Arthur Mervyn | Charles Brockden BrownI could not make you comprehend the criticalness of our position.
Lige on the Line of March | Glenna Lindsley BigelowHer mind was powerfully affected by the criticalness of her situation.
Ormond, Volume I (of 3) | Charles Brockden Brown
British Dictionary definitions for critical
/ (ˈkrɪtɪkəl) /
containing or making severe or negative judgments
containing careful or analytical evaluations: a critical dissertation
of or involving a critic or criticism
of or forming a crisis; crucial; decisive: a critical operation
urgently needed: critical medical supplies
informal so seriously injured or ill as to be in danger of dying
physics of, denoting, or concerned with a state in which the properties of a system undergo an abrupt change: a critical temperature
go critical (of a nuclear power station or reactor) to reach a state in which a nuclear-fission chain reaction becomes self-sustaining
Derived forms of critical
- critically, adverb
- criticalness, 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
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