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essential
[ uh-sen-shuhl ]
adjective
- absolutely necessary; indispensable:
Discipline is essential in an army.
Synonyms: , , , ,
- pertaining to or constituting the essence of a thing.
Antonyms: , , ,
- noting or containing an essence of a plant, drug, etc.
- being such by its very nature or in the highest sense; natural; spontaneous:
essential happiness.
- Mathematics.
- (of a singularity of a function of a complex variable) noting that the Laurent series at the point has an infinite number of terms with negative powers.
- (of a discontinuity) noting that the function is discontinuous and has no limit at the point. Compare removable ( def 2 ).
noun
- a basic, indispensable, or necessary element; chief point:
Concentrate on essentials rather than details.
essential
/ ɪˈsɛnʃəl; ɪˌsɛnʃɪˈælɪtɪ /
adjective
- vitally important; absolutely necessary
- basic; fundamental
the essential feature
- completely realized; absolute; perfect
essential beauty
- biochem (of an amino acid or a fatty acid) necessary for the normal growth of an organism but not synthesized by the organism and therefore required in the diet
- derived from or relating to an extract of a plant, drug, etc
an essential oil
- logic (of a property) guaranteed by the identity of the subject; necessary. Thus, if having the atomic number 79 is an essential property of gold, nothing can be gold unless it has that atomic number
- music denoting or relating to a note that belongs to the fundamental harmony of a chord or piece
- pathol (of a disease) having no obvious external cause
essential hypertension
- geology (of a mineral constituent of a rock) necessary for defining the classification of a rock. Its absence alters the rock's name and classification
noun
- something fundamental or indispensable
a sharp eye is an essential for a printer
- music an essential note
Derived Forms
- essentiality, noun
Other Word Forms
- ·t· adverb
- ·t·Ա noun
- e·t noun adjective
- pre·t· adverb
- ܲȴ-·t adjective
- quasi-·t· adverb
- ܲe·t adjective
- sub·t· adverb
- sub·t·Ա noun
Word History and Origins
Origin of essential1
Synonym Study
Example Sentences
We ask people who spent the day without electricity about what helped them get on with life and what outage essentials they were missing.
Some countries, such as Australia or parts of the EU, are planning requirements to accept cash for essential services in some circumstances.
Some UV radiation is crucial for our wellbeing, enabling our skin to produce essential vitamin D, but too much can be dangerous.
The basins, essential to flood control in the San Gabriel Mountains, are largely located above residential burns areas, according to the county.
Some student unions, such as at Swansea and Cardiff University, also offer a "five free items" scheme to help students access essentials.
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