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vital

vital

405 3.5
Necessary for life or for something to succeed
  • adjective
  • /ˈvaɪtəl/
: vital
  • The patient's presenting symptoms and history play a vital part in pointing to a diagnosis.
  • a vital role
  • play a vital role
  • a vital interest

The quantity of jobs remains vital, but quality matters too.

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Examples

  • This information is absolutely vital to patients in the long run.

  • Learning, questioning and research are vital elements of progression.

  • We play an absolutely vital role in what we believe we see.

  • Here at the beach, this vital part of our culture has been taken away.

  • The quantity of jobs remains vital, but quality matters too.

  • Both schools place an emphasis on the vital role played by free markets.

  • Case management in health care is an increasingly vital component in the delivery of health services.

    Academic text (2008)
  • However, in recommended quantities, salt has a vital role to play in maintaining health.

    Academic text (2012)
  • Pausing to assess and attend to these factors is a vital step in successful change.

    Academic text (2015)
  • The patient's presenting symptoms and history play a vital part in pointing to a diagnosis.

Synonyms

important
vsvital
∞ 1.0

A person or thing that matters a lot

means absolutely necessary rather than only significant or influential
key
vsvital
∞ 2.0

Very important for something to work or succeed

emphasizes being absolutely necessary for life existence or success
critical
vsvital
800 4.0

Very important at a dangerous or decisive moment

is more general meaning absolutely necessary beyond crisis moments
fundamental
vsvital
475 3.5

Very important and necessary for something to work

is about urgent necessity for life existence or success rather than basic origin
crucial
vsvital
437 3.6

Very important for the success or result of something

is about strict necessity for life existence or survival
pivotal
vsvital
69 4.9

Very important for the success of something

extends beyond central role to necessity for life existence or success
primal
vsvital
49 6.2

Most basic and needed for life

focuses on necessity for survival success or existence not primacy
indispensable
vsvital
42 4.6

Needed so much you cannot do without it or them

is necessary specifically for life existence or success
all-important
vsvital
41 4.0

Very necessary for a decision or success

focuses on necessity for life existence or success not only importance
requisite
vsvital
26 6.2

Needed for a particular purpose

is wider covering necessity for life existence or success not only tasks
of the essence
vsvital
  • Formal
21 5.3

Very important and needed right away

means the same but as a single-word adjective rather than a phrase
life-sustaining
vsvital
6 3.9

Needed for a person to stay alive

is broader applying also to success and general necessity
superessential
vsvital
7.4

Very important and needed for something to work or survive

is absolute necessity but not explicitly stronger than essential

Antonyms

271 1.6

More than is needed or wanted

4 6.1

Not needed and can be left out without harm

Idioms

24 3.9

Very important for something to happen or succeed

To have an important effect on how something happens

Compounds

vital sign
  • Specialized
37 2.4

Measurements like heart rate or blood pressure that show how well the body is working

18 3.0

An important body part that is needed for life, like the heart or brain

3 4.3

Official numbers the government collects about births, deaths, marriages, and health

2 3.6

A measure that shows how well a system or business is doing

vital force
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A power once thought to make living things grow and stay alive

vital principle
  • Archaic
1 9.9

An imagined life force thought to make living things grow and work

vital capacity
  • Specialized
1 5.2

The most air you can breathe out after a full breath

élan vital
  • Archaic
9.9

A supposed life force that makes living things grow and change

How Vital

indispensable
42 4.6
vital
405 3.5
essential
49 2.4
necessary
∞ 1.0
optional
90 3.3

Surface Forms

vital positive
vitaler comparative
vitalest superlative

Morphology

vital = vit + al

The root 'vit' is a Latin combining form (life) and not a standalone English word, so an average B1 learner cannot derive the meaning from component parts despite the productive adjectival suffix '-al'.

Etymology

Vital comes from the Latin root vita meaning 'life'. So something vital is needed for life, which is why we call the heart or breathing a vital organ or a vital sign.