consequential
Americanadjective
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following as an effect, result, or outcome; resultant; consequent.
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following as a logical conclusion or inference; logically consistent.
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of significance or importance.
His writings offer insight into his personality, opinions, and strengths, and show early evidence of the consequential man he would become.
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having important effects or results.
Being a lawyer, I knew that a consequential decision should not depend on an informal phone conversation.
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Archaic. self-important; pompous.
adjective
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important or significant
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self-important; conceited
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following as a consequence; resultant, esp indirectly
consequential loss
Usage
Although both consequential and consequent can refer to something which happens as the result of something else, consequent is more common in this sense in modern English: the new measures were put into effect, and the consequent protest led to the dismissal of those responsible
Other Word Forms
- consequentiality noun
- consequentially adverb
- consequentialness noun
- nonconsequential adjective
- nonconsequentiality noun
- nonconsequentially adverb
- nonconsequentialness noun
- quasi-consequential adjective
- quasi-consequentially adverb
Etymology
Origin of consequential
First recorded in 1620–30; from Latin consequenti(a) “sequence (of events), logical sequence” + -al adjective suffix; consequence, -al 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Each time he announces a consequential decision, the report found, an “epidemic of suspicious trading” occurs just before the news would affect the markets.
From Salon • Mar. 26, 2026
The most consequential technology of our lifetimes is being regulated by people who can’t agree on what it is.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026
Increased salaries are always celebrated, but both sides agreeing to a new revenue sharing model was a consequential step forward for players.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 20, 2026
Their conversation includes an explanation of the historic Wong Kim Ark birthright citizenship case of 1898 just as the Supreme Court gears up to hear arguments in the consequential Trump v.
From Slate • Mar. 19, 2026
If permitted to define a decade somewhat loosely, then the next decade was the most crucial and consequential in American history.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
