Adjacent Words

Essential definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

ESSEN'TIAL, a. [L. essentialis.] Necessary to the constitution or existence of a thing. Piety and good works are essential to the christian character. Figure and extension are essential properties of bodies.
And if each system in gradation roll,
Alike essential to the amazing whole--
1. Important in the highest degree.
Judgment is more essential to a general than courage.
2. Pure; highly rectified. Essential oils are such as are drawn from plants by distillation in an alembic with water, as distinguished from empyreumatic oils, which are raised by a naked fire without water.
ESSEN'TIAL, n. Existence; being. [Little used.]
1. First or constituent principles; as the essentials of religion.
2. The chief point; that which is most important.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: absolutely necessary; vitally necessary; "essential tools and materials"; "funds essential to the completion of the project"; "an indispensable worker" [syn: essential, indispensable]
2: basic and fundamental; "the essential feature" [ant: inessential, unessential]
3: of the greatest importance; "the all-important subject of disarmament"; "crucial information"; "in chess cool nerves are of the essence" [syn: all-important, all important, crucial, essential, of the essence]
4: being or relating to or containing the essence of a plant etc; "essential oil"
5: defining rights and duties as opposed to giving the rules by which rights and duties are established; "substantive law" [syn: substantive, essential] [ant: adjective, procedural] n
1: anything indispensable; "food and shelter are necessities of life"; "the essentials of the good life"; "allow farmers to buy their requirements under favorable conditions"; "a place where the requisites of water fuel and fodder can be obtained" [syn: necessity, essential, requirement, requisite, necessary] [ant: inessential, nonessential]

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Date: 14th century 1. of, relating to, or constituting essence ; inherent 2. a. of the utmost importance ; basic, indispensable, necessary <an essential requirement for admission to college> b. being a substance that is not synthesized by the body in a quantity sufficient for normal health and growth and that must be obtained from the diet <dietary protein provides the body with essential amino acids> — compare nonessential 2 3. idiopathic <essential disease> <essential hypertension> • essentially adverb • essentialness noun Synonyms: essential, fundamental, vital, cardinal mean so important as to be indispensable. essential implies belonging to the very nature of a thing and therefore being incapable of removal without destroying the thing itself or its character <conflict is essential in drama>. fundamental applies to something that is a foundation without which an entire system or complex whole would collapse <fundamental principles of algebra>. vital suggests something that is necessary to a thing's continued existence or operation <cut off from vital supplies>. cardinal suggests something on which an outcome turns or depends <a cardinal rule in buying a home>. II. noun Date: 15th century 1. something basic <the essentials of astronomy> 2. something necessary, indispensable, or unavoidable

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. & n. --adj. 1 absolutely necessary; indispensable. 2 fundamental, basic. 3 of or constituting the essence of a person or thing. 4 (of a disease) with no known external stimulus or cause; idiopathic. --n. (esp. in pl.) a basic or indispensable element or thing. Phrases and idioms: essential element any of various elements required by living organisms for normal growth. essential oil a volatile oil derived from a plant etc. with its characteristic odour. Derivatives: essentiality n. essentially adv. essentialness n. Etymology: ME f. LL essentialis (as ESSENCE)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Essential Es*sen"tial, a. [Cf. F. essentiel. See Essence.] 1. Belonging to the essence, or that which makes an object, or class of objects, what it is. Majestic as the voice sometimes became, there was forever in it an essential character of plaintiveness. --Hawthorne. 2. Hence, really existing; existent. Is it true, that thou art but a a name, And no essential thing? --Webster (1623). 3. Important in the highest degree; indispensable to the attainment of an object; indispensably necessary. Judgment's more essential to a general Than courage. --Denham. How to live? -- that is the essential question for us. --H. Spencer. 4. Containing the essence or characteristic portion of a substance, as of a plant; highly rectified; pure; hence, unmixed; as, an essential oil. ``Mine own essential horror.'' --Ford.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(essentials) Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English. 1. Something that is essential is extremely important or absolutely necessary to a particular subject, situation, or activity. It was absolutely essential to separate crops from the areas that animals used as pasture... As they must also sprint over short distances, speed is essential... Jordan promised to trim the city budget without cutting essential services. = crucial ADJ: oft it v-link ADJ to-inf 2. The essentials are the things that are absolutely necessary for the situation you are in or for the task you are doing. The flat contained the basic essentials for bachelor life. N-COUNT: usu pl 3. The essential aspects of something are its most basic or important aspects. Most authorities agree that play is an essential part of a child's development... In this trial two essential elements must be proven: motive and opportunity. = fundamental ADJ 4. The essentials are the most important principles, ideas, or facts of a particular subject. ...the essentials of everyday life, such as eating and exercise... N-PLURAL

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. a. 1. Vital, necessary, requisite, indispensable, highly important. 2. Volatile, diffusible, pure, highly rectified. 3. (Med.) Idiopathic. II. n. [Usually in pl.] 1. Indispensable element, vital part, absolute requisite. 2. Rudiment, first principle, first step, outline.

Moby Thesaurus

ab ovo, austere, axiom, bare, bare necessities, basal, basic, basilar, bedrock, bench mark, brass tacks, call for, called for, capital, cardinal, cardinal point, center, central, chaste, chief, chief thing, climax, condition, congenital, connate, constituent, constitutional, constitutive, core, cornerstone, crisis, critical point, crux, deep-seated, demand, demand for, desideration, desideratum, element, elemental, elementary, elixir, essence, essential facts, essential matter, essentials, flower, focal, focus, foremost, fundamental, gist, gravamen, great point, gut, heart, high point, homely, homespun, homogeneous, hypostasis, imperative, important, important thing, inborn, inbred, indicated, indispensable, indivisible, innate, inner essence, intrinsic, irreducible, irreductible, irreplaceable, issue, kernel, key, keystone, landmark, leading, life-and-death, life-or-death, main, main point, main thing, marrow, material, material point, meat, mere, milestone, monolithic, must, must item, necessaries, necessary, necessities, necessitous, necessity, need, need for, needed, needful, nub, nucleus, nuts and bolts, occasion, of a piece, of the essence, of vital importance, original, part and parcel, pith, pivot, plain, postulate, prerequirement, prerequisite, primal, primary, prime, primitive, principal, principle, pure, pure and simple, quid, quiddity, quintessence, quintessential, radical, real issue, required, requirement, requisite, requisition, right-hand, rudiment, rudimentary, salient point, sap, severe, simon-pure, simple, sine qua non, single, soul, spare, spirit, stark, stuff, substance, substantial, substantive, substantive point, the bottom line, the data, the details, the dope, the facts, the information, the necessary, the needful, the nitty-gritty, the particulars, the picture, the point, the scoop, the score, the specifics, the whole story, turning point, unadorned, uncluttered, underlying, undifferenced, undifferentiated, unforgoable, uniform, vital, want, wanted