vi·tal
(vīt́l)
[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin vītālis, from vīta, life.]
adjective
- Of, relating to, or characteristic of life: See synonyms at living
- Necessary to the continuation of life; life-sustaining: a vital organ; vital nutrients.
- Full of life; animated: “The population of the teeming, vital slum . . . declined” (Rick Hampson)
- Imparting life or animation; invigorating: the sun's vital rays.
- Necessary to continued existence or effectiveness; essential: “Irrigation was vital to early civilization” (William H. McNeill) “A vital component of any democracy is a free labor movement” (Bayard Rustin)
- Concerned with or recording data pertinent to lives: vital records.
- Biology Used or done on a living cell or tissue: vital dyes; vital staining.
- Destructive to life; fatal: a vital injury.
derivatives
- vítal·ly
- adverb
- vítal·ness
- noun
