Adjacent Words

Important definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

IMPORT'ANT, a. Literally, bearing on or to. Hence, weighty; momentous; of great consequence; having a bearing on some interest, measure or result by which good or ill may be produced. Truth is important to happiness as well as to knowledge, but none so important as religious truth. The commerce of Great Britain is important to her navy, and her navy is important to her independence. Men often forget the important end for which they were created.
1. Bearing on; forcible; driving.
He fiercely at him flew,
And with important outrage him assailed.
2. Importunate. [Not used.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: of great significance or value; "important people"; "the important questions of the day" [syn: important, of import] [ant: unimportant]
2: important in effect or meaning; "a significant change in tax laws"; "a significant change in the Constitution"; "a significant contribution"; "significant details"; "statistically significant" [syn: significant, important] [ant: insignificant, unimportant]
3: of extreme importance; vital to the resolution of a crisis; "a crucial moment in his career"; "a crucial election"; "a crucial issue for women" [syn: crucial, important] [ant: noncrucial]
4: having authority or ascendancy or influence; "an important official"; "the captain's authoritative manner" [syn: authoritative, important]
5: having or suggesting a consciousness of high position; "recited the decree with an important air"; "took long important strides in the direction of his office"

Merriam Webster's

adjective Etymology: Middle English importante, from Medieval Latin important-, importans, present participle of importare to signify — more at import Date: 15th century 1. marked by or indicative of significant worth or consequence ; valuable in content or relationship 2. obsolete importunate, urgent 3. giving evidence of a feeling of self-importance Usage: see importantly

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. 1 (often foll. by to) of great effect or consequence; momentous. 2 (of a person) having high rank or status, or great authority. 3 pretentious, pompous. 4 (absol. in parenthetic construction) what is a more important point or matter (they are willing and, more important, able). Usage: Use of importantly here is disp. Derivatives: importantly adv. (see note above). Etymology: F f. med.L (as IMPORT)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Important Im*por"tant, a. [F. important. See Import, v. t.] 1. Full of, or burdened by, import; charged with great interests; restless; anxious. [Obs.] Thou hast strength as much As serves to execute a mind very important. --Chapman. 2. Carrying or possessing weight or consequence; of valuable content or bearing; significant; weighty. Things small as nothing . . . He makes important. --Shak. 3. Bearing on; forcible; driving. [Obs.] He fiercely at him flew, And with important outrage him assailed. --Spenser. 4. Importunate; pressing; urgent. [Obs.] --Shak. Syn: Weighty; momentous; significant; essential; necessary; considerable; influential; serious.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. 1. Something that is important is very significant, is highly valued, or is necessary. The planned general strike represents an important economic challenge to the government... It's important to answer her questions as honestly as you can... It was important that he rest. ADJ: oft ADJ to n, it v-link ADJ to-inf/that • importantly I was hungry, and, more importantly, my children were hungry. ADV 2. Someone who is important has influence or power within a society or a particular group. ...an important figure in the media world. ADJ

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. 1. Weighty, momentous, grave, serious, material, significant, of importance, of moment, of great weight. 2. Influential, prominent, of influence, of high standing or station. 3. Self-important, consequential, pompous.

Moby Thesaurus

absolute, arrogant, ascendant, authoritarian, authoritative, authorized, autocratic, big, big-league, big-name, big-time, bigwig, bigwigged, bloated, charismatic, charming, clothed with authority, commanding, competent, consequential, considerable, conspicuous, controlling, critical, distinctive, distinguished, dominant, double-barreled, duly constituted, earthshaking, effective, effectual, efficacious, eminent, empowered, enchanting, essential, estimable, ex officio, exceptional, famous, first-class, first-rate, foremost, formidable, front-page, governing, grand, grave, great, heavyweight, hegemonic, hegemonistic, high-powered, high-ranking, imperative, impressive, in the limelight, influential, leading, magisterial, magnetic, major, marked, material, meaningful, memorable, mighty, momentous, monocratic, name, notable, noted, noteworthy, noticeable, official, outstanding, personable, persuasive, pontifical, portentous, potent, powerful, preeminent, prestigious, prominent, puffy, puissant, ranking, remarkable, reputable, respected, ruling, salient, self-important, senior, signal, significant, strong, stuffy, suasive, substantial, superior, supreme, telling, to the front, top-level, top-notch, totalitarian, unusual, urgent, valuable, vital, weighty, winning, world-shaking, worthwhile, worthy