critical

[ krit-i-kuhl ]

/ ˈkrɪt ɪ kəl /

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See synonyms for: critical / criticality / critically / criticalness on Thesaurus.com

adjective

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.

OTHER WORDS FOR critical

1 captious, censorious, carping, faultfinding, caviling.

2 discriminating, judicious; exact, precise.

See synonyms for critical on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of critical

First recorded in 1580–90; critic + -al¹

OTHER WORDS FROM critical

crit·i·cal·ly, adverbcrit·i·cal·i·ty

[-krit-i-kal-i-tee], / ˌkrɪt ɪˈkæl ɪ ti/, crit·i·cal·ness, nounan·ti·crit·i·cal, adjectivenon·crit·i·cal, adjective

pseu·do·crit·i·cal, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use critical in a sentence

Gyp, deeply impressed by the criticalness of the situation, summoned a meeting of the Ravens.
Highacres|Jane Abbott
I 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 Russell
He 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 Brown
I could not make you comprehend the criticalness of our position.
Lige on the Line of March|Glenna Lindsley Bigelow

Her mind was powerfully affected by the criticalness of her situation.
Ormond, Volume I (of 3)|Charles Brockden Brown

British Dictionary definitions for critical

critical

/ (ˈkrɪtɪkəl) /

adjective

containing or making severe or negative judgments

containing careful or analytical evaluationsa critical dissertation

of or involving a critic or criticism

of or forming a crisis; crucial; decisivea critical operation

urgently neededcritical 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 changea 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, adverbcriticalness, 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

critical

OTHER WORDS FOR critical

Origin of critical

OTHER WORDS FROM critical

Words related to critical

How to use critical in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for critical

Derived forms of critical