vital

[vahyt-l]

adjective

1. of or relating to life.

   vital processes.

2. having remarkable energy, liveliness, or force of personality.

   a vital leader.

3. being the seat or source of life.

   the vital organs.

4. necessary to life.

   vital fluids.

5. necessary to the existence, continuance, or well-being of something; indispensable; essential.

   vital for a healthy society.

   Synonyms: critical, important

6. affecting the existence, well-being, truth, etc., of something.

   a vital error.

7. of critical importance.

   vital decisions.

8. destructive to life; deadly.

   a vital wound.

vital

/ ˈvaɪtəl /

adjective

1. essential to maintain life

   the lungs perform a vital function

2. forceful, energetic, or lively

   a vital person

3. of, relating to, having, or displaying life

   a vital organism

4. indispensable or essential

   books vital to this study

5. of great importance; decisive

   a vital game

6. archaic,  influencing the course of life, esp negatively

   a vital treachery

noun

1. (plural)

   1. the bodily organs, such as the brain, liver, heart, lungs, etc, that are necessary to maintain life

   2. the organs of reproduction, esp the male genitals

2. (plural) the essential elements of anything

Other Word Forms

• vitally adverb
• vitalness noun
• nonvital adjective
• nonvitally adverb
• nonvitalness noun
• quasi-vital adjective
• quasi-vitally adverb
• supervital adjective
• supervitally adverb
• supervitalness noun
• unvital adjective
• unvitally adverb
• unvitalness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of vital¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin vītālis, equivalent to vīt(a) “life” (derivative of vīvere “to live”; akin to Greek bioûn, Sanskrit jīvati “(he) lives,” English quick ( def. ) ) + -ālis -al ¹ ( def. )

Word History and Origins

Origin of vital¹

C14: via Old French from Latin vītālis belonging to life, from vīta life

Example Sentences

The veep has tried to increase his visibility recently by going on vacation wherever he can still get a room and service, and he’s desperate to seem vital.

From Salon

Analysis of who is - and who is not - backing the party, and why, provides us with vital clues.

From BBC

The attack at the weekend forced the company to take vital IT systems offline, which has affected car sales and production.

From BBC

Some of the vital details to get down are the time and date of the crash, as well as the registration, make, model and colour of all vehicles involved.

From BBC

He said: "Pausing new public funding to arms companies in Scotland implicated in this devastation is a vital act of solidarity. It must be implemented quickly and robustly."

From BBC

Related Words

• basic 
• critical 
• crucial 
• decisive 
• fundamental 
• imperative 
• important 
• indispensable 
• integral 
• key 
• meaningful 
• necessary 
• needed 
• significant 
• urgent