emergency

[ ih-mur-juhn-see ]
/ ɪˈmɜr dʒən si /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR emergency ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural e·mer·gen·cies.

a sudden, urgent, usually unexpected occurrence or occasion requiring immediate action.
a state, especially of need for help or relief, created by some unexpected event: a weather emergency; a financial emergency.

adjective

granted, used, or for use in an emergency: an emergency leave; emergency lights.

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Origin of emergency

First recorded in 1625–35; from Medieval Latin ēmergentia, equivalent to ēmerg- (see emerge) + -entia -ency. See emergent

synonym study for emergency

1. Emergency, crisis, straits refer to dangerous situations. An emergency is a situation demanding immediate action: A power failure created an emergency in transportation. A crisis is a vital or decisive turning point in a condition or state of affairs, and everything depends on the outcome of it: Help arrived when affairs had reached a crisis. Strait (usually straits ) suggests a pressing situation, often one of need or want: The family was in desperate straits for food and clothing.

OTHER WORDS FROM emergency

non·e·mer·gen·cy, adjective, noun, plural non·e·mer·gen·cies.post·e·mer·gen·cy, adjectivepre·e·mer·gen·cy, adjective, noun, plural pre·e·mer·gen·cies.

Words nearby emergency

emerald green, Emerald Isle, emerald moth, emerge, emergence, emergency, emergency boat, emergency brake, emergency medical technician, emergency medicine, emergency room
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

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Words related to emergency

difficulty, crunch, accident, necessity, tension, distress, misadventure, climax, strait, juncture, pass, plight, depression, fix, scrape, vicissitude, compulsion, exigency, pressure, hole

Example sentences from the Web for emergency

British Dictionary definitions for emergency

emergency
/ (ɪˈmɜːdʒənsɪ) /

noun plural -cies

  1. an unforeseen or sudden occurrence, esp of a danger demanding immediate remedy or action
  2. (as modifier)an emergency exit
  1. a patient requiring urgent treatment
  2. (as modifier)an emergency ward
state of emergency a condition, declared by a government, in which martial law applies, usually because of civil unrest or natural disaster
NZ a player selected to stand by to replace an injured member of a team; reserve
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