critical

critical

adjective

Definition of CRITICAL

1

given to making or expressing unfavorable judgments about things <adults tend to be critical of teenagers' taste in music and movies>

Synonyms captious, carping, caviling (or cavilling), faultfinding, hypercritical, judgmental, overcritical, rejective

Related Words discerning, discriminating, judicious; demanding, exacting, fastidious, finical, finicky, fussy, nitpicky, particular, picky; pettifogging, quibbling; harsh, merciless, uncharitable, unforgiving

Near Antonyms undiscriminating; undemanding, unfussy; charitable, forgiving

Antonyms uncritical

2

needing immediate attention <this problem isn't critical, so we can go home now and tend to it in the morning>

Synonyms burning, clamant, compelling, critical, crying, dire, emergent, exigent, imperative, imperious, importunate, instant, necessitous, pressing, urgent

Related Words demanding, extreme, immediate, insistent, intense, overriding; crucial, desperate, grave, life-and-death (also life-or-death), serious, severe, vital; dangerous, explosive, hazardous, perilous, precarious, unstable

Near Antonyms incidental, low-pressure, minor, negligible, trivial, unimportant; nonthreatening, safe, stable

Antonyms noncritical, nonurgent

3

of the greatest possible importance <this is the critical exam that will largely determine your college career>

Synonyms critical, key, pivotal, vital

Related Words decisive, life-and-death (also life-or-death), weighty; basic, elementary, fundamental; essential, indispensable, necessary, requisite; pressing, urgent

Near Antonyms inconsequential, insignificant, minor, trivial, unimportant

4

impossible to do without <critical information for an informed medical diagnosis>

Synonyms all-important, critical, imperative, indispensable, integral, must-have, necessary, necessitous, needed, needful, required, requisite, vital

Related Words prerequisite; compulsory, mandatory, nonelective, obligatory; consequential, crucial, important, major, material, meaningful, momentous, significant, substantial, weighty; basic, central, fundamental, key, organic; insistent, persistent, pressing, urgent

Near Antonyms undesired, unwanted; inconsequential, insignificant, unimportant; excess, external, extra, extraneous, superfluous, surplus

Antonyms dispensable, inessential, needless, nonessential, unessential, unnecessary, unneeded