crucial

[kroo-shuhl] / ˈkru ʃəl /

ADJECTIVE

critical, important

Synonyms

STRONGEST

bottom-line central compelling deciding decisive essential imperative momentous necessary pivotal pressing touchy urgent vital

WEAK

acute clamorous climactic desperate dire hanging by thread high-priority insistent on thin ice searching showdown touch and go

Antonyms

STRONGEST

inessential insignificant minor optional secondary trivial unimportant unnecessary voluntary

WEAK

uncritical

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Some experts suggested the distinction between voluntary and mandatory sharing of their cutting-edge technology may be crucial.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 2, 2026

Holman said the costumes were crucial to making the era feel authentic, and that he dipped into his own collection of original Vogue magazines to begin researching the decade.

From BBC • Jun. 2, 2026

But Brunson had one crucial thing that those prodigious athletes did not.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 2, 2026

Microsoft on Tuesday unveiled its own cutting-edge artificial intelligence models in San Francisco -- a crucial step toward reducing its dependence on OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT.

From Barron's • Jun. 2, 2026

The Constitution included one more crucial agreement about slavery without using the word.

From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis

Vocabulary lists containing crucial

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