Word family noun critic criticism adjective critical ≠ uncritical verb criticize adverb critically ≠ uncritically
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishcriticalcrit‧i‧cal /ˈkrɪtɪkəl/ ●●○ S3 W2 adjective 1 MAKING SEVERE JUDGMENTSCRITICIZEcriticizing if you are critical, you criticize someone or somethingcritical of Many economists are critical of the government’s economic policies. Many parents are strongly critical of the school. He made some highly critical remarks.2 IMPORTANTIMPORTANTimportant something that is critical is very important because what happens in the future depends on it SYN crucialcritical to These talks are critical to the future of the peace process. It is absolutely critical for us to know the truth. Foreign trade is of critical importance to the economy.3 DANGEROUS/UNCERTAINSERIOUS SITUATIONserious/worrying a critical time or situation is serious and worrying because things might suddenly become much worse The fighting has stopped, but the situation is still critical. changes that took place during the critical period at the end of the war► see thesaurus at serious4 ill so ill that you might die He is still in a critical condition in hospital. She is in intensive care, where she remains critical but stable.5 → the critical list6 MAKING FAIR JUDGMENTSJUDGEmaking judgments making careful judgments about how good or bad something is His book provides a critical analysis of the television industry in Britain. She looked round the room with a critical eye.7 ART/FILM/BOOKS ETCAART/CULTUREart/literature according to critics who give judgments about art, films, theatre, and books The book came out last year to great critical acclaim (=critics said it was very good). Her first play was a critical success (=critics said it was good).Examples from the Corpus
critical• The article is a critical analysis of Faulkner's novels.• The situation is said to be critical and the army has been brought in to disperse the mob.• Eight people were killed and four are still in a critical condition.• And within a few years after Keynes, the level of production became the critical factor in war mobilization.• The next few months could be critical for the whole mining industry.• But as an activist, I knew how critical her work was.• Things are now critical. Hospitals have no medicine, and people are running out of food.• Shortening product life cycles and rapid product proliferation mean that investment in innovation is critical in global competition.• We need an immediate decision on this critical issue.• It therefore rejected empiricism and was particularly critical of utilitarianism.• These accusations came at a critical phase in the negotiations.• Critical remarks by a teacher can damage the confidence of children.• The government has just published a highly critical report on the state of the education system.• Stan is at a critical stage in his recovery from the accident.• The density of the landfall was critical to calculating at what moment the dam would capitulate.• The policies which are adopted are important, but the means by which they are implemented will be critical to their effectiveness.• How did he survive such a critical wound?critical of• Dillard is very critical of the plan to reorganize the company.critical to• This next phase is critical to the project's success.in a critical condition• He was taken to hospital in a critical condition.• His twin brother, who was airlifted to hospital with him, is in a critical condition.• The next day, Easley was admitted to a local hospital in critical condition.• The three most seriously injured children were still in critical condition.• Two of the wounded are in critical condition, hospital officials said.• Dozens of people were injured and at least 13 were in critical condition last night.• Two of the burns victims were in a critical condition last night.with a critical eye• Go through your whole list with a critical eye.• The seneschal stopped, looking at the work being done with a critical eye.• They would be able to read with a critical eye and thus speak and write with more authority.• He stopped on the top stair and with a critical eye surveyed the neighbor-hood.to ... critical acclaim• Between 1907 and 1942 Freeman produced forty Thorndyke short stories and twenty-one Thorndyke novels, to great critical acclaim. 