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vital

  • adjective
  • vī'təl

Relating to or characteristic of life.

Example

“vital energies; vital functions; vital actions”

Other meanings

  1. Necessary to the continuation of life; being the seat of life; being that on which life depends.

    “The brain is a vital organ.”

  2. Invigorating or life-giving.

Synonyms

  • critical

Example sentences

  • “The preservation of forests is vital to the ecosystem.”

    Tatoeba · Igider · CC0

  • “Self-defense is vital.”

    Tatoeba · shekitten · CC0

Word history

From Latin "vītālis" (of life, life-giving).

Where this comes from

This definition is adapted from “vital” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; example sentences are from Tatoeba, credited to their authors above; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.