exigency
Americannoun
plural
exigencies-
exigent state or character; urgency.
-
Usually exigencies the need, demand, or requirement intrinsic to a circumstance, condition, etc..
the exigencies of city life.
-
a case or situation that demands prompt action or remedy; emergency.
He promised help in any exigency.
- Synonyms:
- pinch, fix, predicament, strait, plight, contingency, crisis
noun
-
the state of being exigent; urgency
-
(often plural) an urgent demand; pressing requirement
-
an emergency
Etymology
Origin of exigency
From the Medieval Latin word exigentia, dating back to 1575–85. See exigent, -ency
Explanation
Think of a mix of excitement and emergency, and you have exigency, a sudden, urgent crisis. The very word conjures up danger and intrigue that demand a cool head and an immediate effort at a solution. Exigency derives from the Latin noun exigentia, which means "urgency" and comes from the verb exigere, meaning "to demand or require." An emergency situation, or exigency, is urgent and demands immediate action. Our lives are filled with exigencies, both large and small, from a child stuck in a tree to lightning striking your house to catastrophic river flooding. Each is an exigency — it's all a matter of perspective.
Vocabulary lists containing exigency
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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The Scarlet Letter
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Calamity, Catastrophe, and Crisis: Disaster Words
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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.
That sense of exigency is honeycombed with grief.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 6, 2023
"We have absolute faith in Australians understanding the exigency of this reform, why we need it, and we believe they'll come on board and vote yes," Davis said.
From Reuters • Jun. 23, 2023
“Associated in my entire family’s mind with exigency, a thing that nobody likes!!”
From Slate • Oct. 15, 2022
It is only to say that it reflects the exigency of the crisis — not some essential nobility of character that this country lacks.
From Seattle Times • Apr. 10, 2022
But even were the expenditure greater than can thus reasonably be expected, I submit to your Lordship that this is a case of no ordinary exigency.
From In the Arctic Seas A Narrative of the Discovery of the Fate of Sir John Franklin and his Companions by McClintock, Francis Leopold
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.
