critical condition
Americannoun
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Medicine/Medical. an unstable state, resulting from severe illness or injury, in which the patient’s vital signs and other symptoms indicate a significant risk of death.
An 80-year-old man with serious head injuries was rushed from the accident scene to the hospital, where he remains in critical condition.
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a state of serious disrepair or disarray.
After years of underfunding, the city’s infrastructure is in critical condition.
Etymology
Origin of critical condition
First recorded in 1860–65 critical condition for def. 1; 1950–55 critical condition for def. 2
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.
A source close to the case had said the man had suffered severe burns and the woman was in critical condition.
From Barron's • Jun. 30, 2026
Kies, 21, who played for Guingamp in Ligue 2, was in a critical condition when he was pulled from the water by firefighters on Monday, and later died in hospital.
From BBC • Jun. 25, 2026
Back-to-back shark attacks in the Florida Panhandle have left at least one swimmer in critical condition this month.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 20, 2026
"Nine are in a critical condition," she added.
From Barron's • Jun. 20, 2026
Fox, who didn’t yet have a driver’s license, is semicomatose and still in critical condition.
From "The Adoration of Jenna Fox" by Mary E. Pearson
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.
