critical mass

noun

: a size, number, or amount large enough to produce a particular result
the critical mass of activity needed for a retail store

Examples of critical mass in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Thankfully for all of us, that wasn’t the case in Dallas in July 1966 — leading to a moment that became an inflection point along the way to this critical mass. Kansas City Star, 15 Feb. 2026 Consistency of purpose and sustained growth at Disney require timely creative products, continued guest spending (especially from wealthier households), and a critical mass of cast-member collaboration and engagement. Russ Bredholt Jr, The Orlando Sentinel, 14 Feb. 2026 After Democratic urging, a critical mass of Republicans seemed prepared Thursday afternoon to support an agreement. Allison Pecorin, ABC News, 29 Jan. 2026 Broad enterprise cloud adoption took nearly two decades to reach critical mass, as organisations embraced new disciplines like DevOps and FinOps, shifted infrastructure spending from capital to operating expenditure, and gradually moved mission-critical workloads to the cloud. CBS News, 22 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for critical mass

Word History

First Known Use

1947, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of critical mass was in 1947

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Cite this Entry

“Critical mass.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/critical%20mass. Accessed 18 Feb. 2026.

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