Synonyms of critical

critical

adjective

ˈkri-ti-kəl 

1

as in particular

given to making or expressing unfavorable judgments about things

adults tend to be critical of teenagers' taste in music and movies

Synonyms & Similar Words

• particular
• demanding
• rejective
• judgmental
• hypercritical
• overcritical
• captious
• faultfinding
• merciless
• discerning
• carping
• cavilling
• caviling
• judicious
• harsh
• discriminating
• finicky
• finical
• fastidious
• nitpicky
• exacting
• picky
• unforgiving
• fussy
• pettifogging
• uncharitable
• quibbling

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• uncritical
• undiscriminating
• charitable
• undemanding
• forgiving
• unfussy

2

as in urgent

needing immediate attention

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• urgent
• acute
• pressing
• emergent
• compelling
• imperative
• intense
• dire
• crying
• crucial
• serious
• desperate
• instant
• exigent
• immediate
• burning
• importunate
• imperious
• extreme
• insistent
• dangerous
• overriding
• clamant
• vital
• necessitous
• demanding
• hazardous
• life-and-death
• precarious
• life-or-death
• perilous
• severe
• explosive
• unstable
• grave

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• minor
• trivial
• unimportant
• noncritical
• incidental
• negligible
• low-pressure
• stable
• safe
• nonurgent
• nonthreatening

3

as in crucial

of the greatest possible importance

this is the critical exam that will largely determine your college career

Synonyms & Similar Words

• crucial
• key
• vital
• pivotal
• essential
• fundamental
• basic
• necessary
• decisive
• elementary
• life-or-death
• instrumental
• urgent
• life-and-death
• requisite
• indispensable
• pressing
• weighty

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• minor
• unimportant
• trivial
• insignificant
• inconsequential

4

as in essential

impossible to do without

critical information for an informed medical diagnosis

Synonyms & Similar Words

• essential
• necessary
• integral
• required
• needed
• vital
• needful
• crucial
• imperative
• important
• must-have
• requisite
• all-important
• indispensable
• key
• mandatory
• major
• of the essence
• basic
• fundamental
• prerequisite
• compulsory
• necessitous
• meaningful
• urgent
• momentous
• central
• significant
• substantial
• organic
• obligatory
• persistent
• pressing
• consequential
• insistent
• material
• nonelective
• weighty

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• unnecessary
• needless
• nonessential
• unwanted
• unimportant
• undesired
• dispensable
• insignificant
• unneeded
• extra
• external
• unessential
• inessential
• excess
• inconsequential
• superfluous
• extraneous
• surplus

Try This Instead

For

Try This

critical thinking

logical thinking

strategic thinking

crucial thinking

rational thinking

analytical thinking

a critical point

a crucial point

a vital point

a climactic point

an analytical point

a climatic point

critical importance

crucial importance

major importance

significant importance

essential importance

extreme importance

a critical review

a skeptical review

a careful review

a cynical review

a negative review

an analytical review

a critical period

an important period

a significant period

a definitive period

an essential period

a pivotal period

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective critical contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of critical are captious, carping, censorious, faultfinding, and hypercritical. While all these words mean "inclined to look for and point out faults and defects," critical may also imply an effort to see a thing clearly and truly in order to judge it fairly.

a critical essay

When might captious be a better fit than critical?

While the synonyms captious and critical are close in meaning, captious suggests a readiness to detect trivial faults or raise objections on trivial grounds.

a captious critic

Where would carping be a reasonable alternative to critical?

The synonyms carping and critical are sometimes interchangeable, but carping implies an ill-natured or perverse picking of flaws.

a carping editorial

When could censorious be used to replace critical?

The words censorious and critical can be used in similar contexts, but censorious implies a disposition to be severely critical and condemnatory.

the censorious tone of the review

When can faultfinding be used instead of critical?

Although the words faultfinding and critical have much in common, faultfinding implies a querulous or exacting temperament.

a faultfinding reviewer

When is it sensible to use hypercritical instead of critical?

The words hypercritical and critical are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, hypercritical suggests a tendency to judge by unreasonably strict standards.

hypercritical disparagement of other people's work

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of critical

The singer’s solo career enjoyed critical and commercial success, and Soda returned for a comeback tour in 2007. —Ernesto Lechner, Rolling Stone, 3 May 2025

Lewis is Johnson’s primary backup and is a critical component of all their special teams units, making his 53-man roster inclusion quite likely. —Joe Buscaglia, New York Times, 2 May 2025

The United States Geological Survey published a list of 50 critical minerals in 2022. —Carlie Procell, USA Today, 2 May 2025

The order, which Trump signed in private, seeks to jumpstart the mining of both U.S. and international waters as part of a push to offset China's sweeping control of the critical minerals industry. —Ernest Scheyder and Jarrett Renshaw, USA Today, 26 Apr. 2025