Lexic.us

Definition of Critical

1. Adjective. Marked by a tendency to find and call attention to errors and flaws. "A critical attitude"

2. Adjective. At or of a point at which a property or phenomenon suffers an abrupt change especially having enough mass to sustain a chain reaction. "Go critical"

3. Adjective. Characterized by careful evaluation and judgment. "A critical analysis of Melville's writings"

4. Adjective. Urgently needed; absolutely necessary. "Of vital interest"

5. Adjective. Forming or having the nature of a turning point or crisis. "The critical test"

6. Adjective. Being in or verging on a state of crisis or emergency. "An illness at the critical stage"

7. Adjective. Of or involving or characteristic of critics or criticism. "Critical acclaim"

Definition of Critical

1. a. Qualified to criticise, or pass judgment upon, literary or artistic productions.

Definition of Critical

1. Adjective. Inclined to find fault or criticize; fastidious; captious; censorious; exacting. ¹

2. Adjective. Pertaining to, or indicating, a crisis or turning point. ¹

3. Adjective. Extremely important. ¹

4. Adjective. Relating to criticism or careful analysis, such as literary or film criticism. ¹

5. Adjective. (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. ¹

6. Adjective. Likely to go out of control if disturbed, that is, opposite of stable. ¹

7. Adjective. Of the point (in temperature, reagent concentration etc.) where a nuclear or chemical reaction becomes self-sustaining. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Critical

1. critic [adj] - See also: critic

Medical Definition of Critical

1. 1. Denoting or of the nature of a crisis. 2. Denoting a morbid condition in which death is possible. 3. In sufficient quantity as to constitute a turning point. (05 Mar 2000)

Lexicographical Neighbors of Critical

criterion-related validity criterion of verifiability criterion of verification criterional criterionless criterions criterior criterium criteriums crith

crithidia crithidia fasciculata crithomancy criths critic critical (current term) critical Reynolds number critical acclaim critical analysis critical angle

critical angles critical appraisal critical care critical care unit critical concentration critical dissolved oxygen concentration critical flicker fusion frequency critical function critical functions critical gradient

Literary usage of Critical

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. The Lancet (1898)
"The Span of Gestation and the Gaue of Birth : a Study of the critical ... Daring the "critical e" the active absorption of the yelk is effected by the ..."

2. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London by Royal Society (Great Britain) (1907)
"Note on Opalescence in Fluids near the critical Temperature. ... The phenomenon of opalescence at and near the critical temperature has been observed by ..."

3. Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Herbert Arthur Evans, Charles Praetorius (1886)
"The critical value of Qi will now be apparent to the student. It is simply that of a check upon Q2. Being ultimately derived from the same source, ..."

4. Journal of the American Chemical Society by American Chemical Society (1915)
"The critical phenomena were normal and different samples of condensed liquid gave identical results both as to vapor pressure and critical constants. 4. ..."

Other Resources: