Word family noun essence essentials ≠ inessentials adjective essential ≠ inessential adverb essentially
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishessentiales‧sen‧tial1 /ɪˈsenʃəl/ ●●● S3 W2 adjective 1 IMPORTANTextremely important and necessaryessential for/to A good diet is essential for everyone.it is essential (that) It is essential that our pilots be given the best possible training.it is essential to do something It is essential to book in advance. Window locks are fairly cheap and absolutely essential. Even in small companies, computers are an essential tool.► see thesaurus at important, necessary2 MAINthe essential part, quality, or feature of something is the most basic one SYN fundamental The essential difference between Sam and me was the fact that I took life seriously. The essential point of relay racing is that it is a team effort.COLLOCATIONS – Meaning 1: extremely important and necessarynounsessential informationYou can get essential travel information from the website.essential readingThe journal is essential reading for doctors.essential services (=organizations such as the police or the fire or health service)The law prohibits workers in essential services from striking.adverbsabsolutely/really essentialIt is absolutely essential to keep this information secret.verbsbe seen/regarded as essentialThese measures are seen as essential for national security.be considered/deemed essentialDuring the summer, air conditioning is considered essential.phrasesplay/perform an essential role in somethingAntibiotics play an essential role in controlling infection. THESAURUSessential extremely important and necessaryWater is essential for life.The right to protest is an essential part of any democracy.I missed out an essential ingredient.They learn skills that are essential for success in later life.vital extremely important and necessary. Vital sounds stronger than essentialHis evidence was vital to the defence case.Nurses and police officers provide vital services.It is vital that leaking gas pipes are fixed immediately.crucial extremely important and making the difference between success and failureAdvertising is crucial to successful book selling.The headteacher has played a crucial role in transforming this school.indispensable if someone or something is indispensable, you cannot do something without them and they are extremely usefulShe soon made herself indispensable in the office.Mobile phones have become an indispensable part of our daily lives.something is a must informal used when recommending something to someone and saying that they should definitely have it, do it, visit it etcVirus checkers are a must for computer users concerned with security.If you’re in Austria, a visit to Salzburg is a must. COLLOCATIONS – Meaning 2: the essential part, quality, or feature of something is the most basic onenounsthe essential elementHard work is the essential element of his success.an essential ingredientMost people believe that love is an essential ingredient in a marriage.an essential differenceThe essential difference between the two boats lies in the design of the hull.the essential pointThe essential point is that all children should have an equal opportunity to study.an essential featureA free press is an essential feature of a democracy.an essential componentControlling inflation is an essential component of the government’s economic strategy.the essential nature of somethingThe essential nature of stem cells is that they are the source of all other cells in the body. Examples from the Corpus
essential• If you're going hiking in the mountains, a decent pair of boots is essential.• If you're going walking in the mountains, strong boots are essential.• A second essential component in all such programmes is winning over local people.• What is the essential difference between these two books?• The essential difference between this class and other French classes is that this is intended for business people.• Quick personal decisions are essential for success in an entrepreneurial business.• Calcium is essential for the development of healthy teeth and bones.• This follow-up is essential in ward teaching, but poor facilities often make it difficult to achieve without interruption.• But Silber and the others have identified one essential ingredient: abhorrence for the status quo.• The structure of levels was an essential part of the National Curriculum from its inception.• The tourist industry is now acknowledged as an essential part of the Spanish economy.• The essential point is that you both need to treat each other with much more respect.• They consider that an exchange of information on this problem is an essential prerequisite.• It is essential that the oil is checked every 10,000 km.• It's essential that you wear protective clothing in this area.• Cleaners are the most essential, the most unseen, apparently the least powerful of modern capitalism's new working class.• The layer of fat on the baby seal's body is essential to its survival.• It is essential to read any document carefully before you sign it.• In undermining the notion of essential truth, however, Nietzsche also undermines the notion of an essential self.essential for/to• Programs such as this are essential for anybody building a library of scanned images, gem drawing files or other formats.• It is also essential to be honest about your financial needs or lack of financial ambition.• It is essential to book in advance.• Although essential to children, the tissue seems less important to healthy adults.• When roasting lean meats and small game birds, basting is essential to maintain moisture.• He acknowledged that it is essential to maintain the balance between basic research and commissioned research.• In these respects, as your Lordships can see, the Lawrence principle was not essential to the reasoning.• This context is essential to the understanding of humanism, one of the fundamental aspects of Western thought.• Good food is essential for your health.essential difference• This is the essential difference between anthropology and Darwinism.• This has led to the argument that there is no essential difference between debt and tax finance.• What then is the essential difference between direct and traditional insurance?• The essential difference between free email and its paid for counterpart is that the email service is provided through a Web interface.• The essential difference between single-step selection and cumulative selection is this.• And in that there lies an essential difference between the painters and the poets here.• The market-based economies and private ownership in Western democracies make an essential difference in the scope and application of the centralization concepts.• Whether they made an essential difference is another story, but I tend to think that everything counts.essentialessential2 noun 1 [countable usually plural]IMPORTANT something that is necessary to do something or in a particular situation SYN necessity She packed a few essentials. We only had the bare essentials (=the most necessary things).2 → the essentialsExamples from the Corpus
essential• She had packed two cases with clothes, towels and essentials.• Her bag was light now, only packed with the bare essentials.• In any conference or special event there are certain essentials.• Leg infantry has to carry every item they will need, and that means only the barest of essentials.• The budget provides money for food, transportation, and other essentials.• But also, the principle of parsimony should be used to keep the research down to essentials.• Now it was down to essentials.bare essentials• Peter Stansill provided the bare essentials, and Williams, hurriedly schooled in the importance of deadlines, learnt on the job.• Yet Gloria herself never seemed to hold on to more than the bare essentials that they had in their two paper carriers.• Now, she was stripped down to the bare essentials of her person, trying to deal with her knowledge.• Reduced to the bare essentials, the divergent internal performance patterns looked like the figure on page 264.• Despite a lifestyle stripped to the bare essentials, they are also some of the most visually arresting animals in the desert.• Her bag was light now, only packed with the bare essentials.• Learn how to distil large quantities of information into their bare essentials. 7.• As its title suggests, Functionalism tends to reduce a problem, and its solution, to bare essentials. 