Webster's English Dictionary

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critical

Cross references:
  1. acute                 
 
crit.i.cal \'krit-i-k*l\ \.krit-*-'kal-*t-e-\ \'krit-i-k(*-)le-\ \-k*l-n*s\ 
   aj 1a: inclined to criticize severely and unfavorably  1b: consisting of or 
   involving criticism {~ writings}  1c: exercising or involving careful 
   judgment or judicious evaluation  1d: including variant readings and 
   scholarly emendations {a ~ edit ion} 2a: of, relating to, or being a 
   turning point or specially important junct ure {~ phase} 2b: relating to or 
   being a state in which or a measurement or point at whi ch some quality, 
   property, or phenomenon suffers a definite change {~ temperature} 2c: 
   CRUCIAL, DECISIVE {~ test}  2d: indispensable for the weathering, solution, 
   or overcoming of a crisis  3: of doubtful issue  4: of sufficient size to 
   sustain a chain reaction - used of a mass of fi ssionable materiaM, 
   CENSORIOUS: CRITICAL may imply an effort to see a thing clearly and truly 
   in order to judge it fairly; often it implies harshness in judging; 
   HYPERCRITICAL suggests a tendency to judge by unreasonably strict 
   standards; FAULTFINDING implies a querulous or exacting temperament; 
   CAPTIOUS suggests a readiness to detect trivial faults or raise objections 
   on trivial grounds; CARPING implies an ill-natured or perverse picking of 
   flaws; CENSORIOUS implies a disposition to be severely critical and 
   condemnatory - crit.i.cal.i.ty n SYN syn HYPERCRITICAL, FAULTFINDING, 
   CAPTIOUS, CARPING)