Essential


[uh-sen-shuh l] /əˈsɛn ʃəl/

adjective
1.
absolutely necessary; indispensable:
Discipline is essential in an army.
2.
pertaining to or constituting the essence of a thing.
3.
noting or containing an essence of a plant, drug, etc.
4.
being such by its very nature or in the highest sense; natural; spontaneous:
essential happiness.
5.
Mathematics.

noun
6.
a basic, indispensable, or necessary element; chief point:
Concentrate on essentials rather than details.
/ɪˈsɛnʃəl/
adjective
1.
vitally important; absolutely necessary
2.
basic; fundamental: the essential feature
3.
completely realized; absolute; perfect: essential beauty
4.
(biochem) (of an amino acid or a fatty acid) necessary for the normal growth of an organism but not synthesized by the organism and therefore required in the diet
5.
derived from or relating to an extract of a plant, drug, etc: an essential oil
6.
(logic) (of a property) guaranteed by the identity of the subject; necessary. Thus, if having the atomic number 79 is an essential property of gold, nothing can be gold unless it has that atomic number
7.
(music) denoting or relating to a note that belongs to the fundamental harmony of a chord or piece
8.
(pathol) (of a disease) having no obvious external cause: essential hypertension
9.
(geology) (of a mineral constituent of a rock) necessary for defining the classification of a rock. Its absence alters the rock’s name and classification
noun
10.
something fundamental or indispensable: a sharp eye is an essential for a printer
11.
(music) an essential note
adj.

mid-14c., “that is such by its essence,” from Late Latin essentialis, from essentia (see essence). Meaning “pertaining to essence” is from late 14c., that of “constituting the essence of something” is from 1540s; that of “necessary” is from 1520s. Essentials “indispensable elements” is from early 16c. Related: Essentially.

essential es·sen·tial (ĭ-sěn’shəl)
adj.

n.

es·sen’ti·al’i·ty (-shē-āl’ĭ-tē) or es·sen’tial·ness n.

Read Also:

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  • Essential complexity

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  • Essential element

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  • Essential fatty acid

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