chronic

Rarely chron·i·cal

[kron-ik]

adjective

1. constant; habitual; inveterate.

   a chronic liar.

   Synonyms: hardened, confirmed

2. continuing a long time or recurring frequently.

   a chronic state of civil war.

3. having long had a disease, habit, weakness, or the like.

   a chronic invalid.

4. (of a disease) having long duration (acute ).

noun

1. Slang.,  cronic.

chronic

/ krɒˈnɪsɪtɪ, ˈkrɒnɪk /

adjective

1. continuing for a long time; constantly recurring

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

3. inveterate; habitual

   a chronic smoker

4. informal

   1. very bad

      the play was chronic

   2. very serious

      he left her in a chronic condition

chronic

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

2. Compare acute

Other Word Forms

• chronically adverb
• chronicity noun
• nonchronic adjective
• nonchronical adjective
• subchronic adjective
• subchronical adjective
• unchronic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of chronic¹

First recorded in 1595–1605; from Latin chronicus, from Greek chronikós, equivalent to chrón(os) “time” + -ikos -ic

Word History and Origins

Origin of chronic¹

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

Example Sentences

Iran, a largely arid country, has for years suffered chronic dry spells and heat waves expected to worsen with climate change.

Read more on Barron's

“There are a lot of chronic things going on that there are really no short-term solutions to,” a Williams College economist, Ken Kuttner, said.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Snider spoke openly throughout his life about his struggles with drugs and with chronic pain related to spinal stenosis.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The team then tested RAGE406R in a widely used model for chronic diabetes complications: delayed wound healing in obese mice with Type 2 diabetes.

Read more on Science Daily

"I genuinely don't think I could be with someone who didn't want to understand the endometriosis, because ultimately, I will live with it forever. It's chronic," she added.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• constant 
• continual 
• continuing www.thesaurus.com
• continuous 
• deep-rooted 
• deep-seated 
• habitual 
• incurable 
• lifelong 
• lingering www.thesaurus.com
• persistent 
• protracted 
• recurrent 
• recurring 
• sustained