crucial

adjective

cru·​cial ˈkrü-shəl How to pronounce crucial (audio)
Synonyms of crucial
1
a
: important, significant
… what use we make of them will be the crucial question.—Stanley Kubrick
Vitamins are crucial for maintaining good health.
b
: important or essential as resolving a crisis : decisive
She played a crucial role in the negotiations.
c
: marked by final determination of a doubtful issue
the crucial game of a series
2
archaic : cruciform

Synonyms of crucial

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acute, critical, crucial mean of uncertain outcome.

acute stresses intensification of conditions leading to a culmination or breaking point.

an acute housing shortage

critical adds to acute implications of imminent change, of attendant suspense, and of decisiveness in the outcome.

the war has entered a critical phase

crucial suggests a dividing of the ways and often a test or trial involving the determination of a future course or direction.

a crucial vote

Examples of crucial in a Sentence

Vitamins are crucial for maintaining good health. It's crucial that we arrive before 8 o'clock. Teachers are crucial to the success of the school. She played a crucial role in the meeting.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Even the golf cart service (crucial in a resort this big) is on point, with a seamless online ordering platform and a bounty of staff ready to ferry you around, even at peak times. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Oct. 2026 Disenfranchising legitimate voters The government says ballots cast by people on its list must be set aside in order to protect the integrity of crucial midterm elections. — Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 29 Oct. 2026 The ‘Dogs sophomore setter, Kohen Kazmierczak, fed junior middle hitter Eden Knapp for two crucial kills as their team won six of the final seven points to prevail. — Buddy Collings, The Orlando Sentinel, 29 Oct. 2026 In a brief yet crucial prologue, 10-year-old Kasumi and her parents set out on a countryside camping trip. — James Marsh, Variety, 29 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for crucial

Word History

Etymology

French, from Latin cruc-, crux cross

First Known Use

1706, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of crucial was in 1706

Rhymes for crucial

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Browse Nearby Words

crucethouse
crucial
cruciality
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Cite this Entry

“Crucial.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crucial. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

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Kids Definition

crucial

adjective
cru·​cial ˈkrü-shəl How to pronounce crucial (audio)
1
: being a final or very important test or decision : decisive
the crucial game of a series
2
: very important : significant
water is a crucial element in our weather
crucially
ˈkrüsh-(ə-)lē
adverb
Etymology

from French crucial "having the form of a cross, being or involving a crisis," from Latin cruc-, crux "cross, trouble, torture" — related to cross, crucify, crux

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