criterion

American  

[krahy-teer-ee-uhn] / kraɪˈtɪər i ən /

Rarely criterium

noun

• criteria,
  plural
• criterions
  plural

1. a standard of judgment or criticism; a rule or principle for evaluating or testing something.

   Synonyms:

   yardstick, touchstone, measure

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criterion British  

/ kraɪˈtɪərɪən /

noun

1. a standard by which something can be judged or decided

2. philosophy a defining characteristic of something

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Usage

Like some other nouns borrowed from the Greek, criterion has both a Greek plural, criteria, and a plural formed on the English pattern, criterions. However, the -s plural is rarely used; the plural ending in -a is the usual form: These are the criteria for the selection of candidates. Though criteria is properly a plural noun, it is increasingly used as a singular noun, most often in speech but also occasionally in edited prose: One criteria is that the candidate must be over 18. This use of criteria as a singular noun is generally considered incorrect.

Criteria, the plural of criterion, is not acceptable as a singular noun: this criterion is not valid; these criteria are not valid

Synonym Usage

See standard.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• criterial
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• criteria
  plural
• criterions
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of criterion

First recorded in 1605–15; from Greek kritḗrion “a standard,” equivalent to kri- variant stem of krī́nein “to separate, decide” + -tērion neuter suffix of means (akin to Latin -tōrium -tory ² )

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Explanation

A criterion is a standard for judging something. If you are holding a cupcake competition, your number one criterion might be the smoothness of frosting. A criterion is a category for judging, but can also be a prerequisite for an achievement. It might be an application requirement for a teaching job that you have taught already for two years. If you haven’t, then we say you haven’t "met the criterion" for job experience. Likewise, if you establish the model for something, say you deliver an exciting, profound graduation speech, we might say you "set the criterion" for future speakers.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

criterion criteria criterions

Treating the Lawson criterion as a single unchanging threshold overlooks physical processes that can substantially alter the requirements for ignition.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 10, 2026

Or think of religion, where Mr. Diamond’s criterion of success—widespread devotion by millions—is hardly the only point.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

Givan announced his department was to repeal the SDC criterion and was launching a consultation, external to gather views on whether new legislation was also needed.

From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026

"Coolness and summer comfort have become a property criterion in their own right," she said.

From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026

There must be ways of putting nucleic acids together that will function far better—by any criterion we choose—than any human being who has ever lived.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

So goes the criteria for a role working as chief of staff to Vinod Khosla, founder of Khosla Ventures, the renowned venture firm that’s backed companies including OpenAI, Stripe and DoorDash.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026

"We chose Shell because it's an emblematic company. It meets all the criteria," Thales Miola, a lawyer for the Brazilian NGO Instituto Preservar, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026

We first need to establish some criteria - history, heritage, fanbase, stadium.

From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026

“Visibility may depend less on advertising to people and more on being clearly described to agents through specs, structured product data and reviews that match the criteria agents ask about,” Kim said.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026

But new scales of achievement, for example the Voigt-Kampff Empathy Test, had emerged as criteria by which to judge.

From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick

Scent, in Jack's opinion, was one of the criterions of a gentleman.

From Mr. Sponge's Sporting Tour by Robert Smith Surtees

Consequently it has become evident that the four criterions or standards of judgment by which the human mind reaches its conclusions are faulty and inaccurate.

From Foundations of World Unity by `Abdu'l-Bahá

But if these be fallible criterions, we will notice another that seldom deceives us. 

From The Rain Cloud or, An Account of the Nature, Properties, Dangers and Uses of Rain in Various Parts of the World by Charles Tomlinson

Other schools are not criterions for this ramshackle establishment, anyhow.

From Mary Louise by L. Frank (Lyman Frank) Baum

The proprietor wishes particularly to impress upon the overseer the criterions by which he will judge of his usefullness and capacity.

From American Negro Slavery A Survey of the Supply, Employment and Control of Negro Labor as Determined by the Plantation Regime by Ulrich Bonnell Phillips

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Related Words

• benchmark
• norm
• precedent
• principle
• proof
• touchstone
• yardstick

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