critical

      English

      Etymology

      From the suffix -al and Latin criticus, from Ancient Greek κριτικός (kritikos, “of or for judging, able to discern”) < κρίνω (krinō, “I separate, judge”), also the root of crisis).

      Pronunciation

      • IPA: /ˈkrɪtɪkəl/
      • Audio (US)
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      Adjective

      critical (comparative more critical, superlative most critical)

      1. Inclined to find fault or criticize; fastidious; captious; censorious; exacting.
        A good teacher is fair but critical.
      2. Pertaining to, or indicating, a crisis or turning point.
        This is a critical moment.
      3. Extremely important.
        It's critical that you deliver this on time.
      4. Relating to criticism or careful analysis, such as literary or film criticism.
        The movie was a critical success, but bombed at the box-office.
      5. (medicine) Of a patient condition involving unstable vital signs and a prognosis that predicts the condition could worsen; or, a patient condition that requires urgent treatment in an intensive care or critical care medical facility.
        The patient's condition is critical.
      6. Likely to go out of control if disturbed, that is, opposite of stable.
        The political situation was so critical that the government declared the state of siege.
      7. Of the point (in temperature, reagent concentration etc.) where a nuclear or chemical reaction becomes self-sustaining.
        The reaction was about to become critical.

      Derived terms

      Terms derived from critical

      Related terms

      Translations

      inclined to find fault
      pertaining to or indicating a crisis
      extremely important
      relating to criticism
      medicine: involving unstable vital signs
      likely to go wrong
      of the point where a reaction becomes self-sustaining
      The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
      Translations to be checked

      See also

      Noun

      critical (plural criticals)

      1. A critical value, factor, etc.
        • 1976, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Journal of engineering for industry (volume 98, page 508)
          The second undamped system criticals show a greater percentage depression than the first.
        • 2008, John J. Coyle, C. John Langley, Brian Gibson, Supply Chain Management: A Logistics Perspective (page 564)
          Finally, criticals are high-risk, high-value items that give the final product a competitive advantage in the marketplace […] Criticals, in part, determine the customer's ultimate cost of using the finished product — in our example, the computer.

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      Last modified on 19 June 2013, at 00:41