essential

essential
—essentially, adv. —essentialness, n.
/euh sen"sheuhl/, adj.
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. Math.
a. (of a singularity of a function of a complex variable) noting that the Laurent series at the point has an infinite number of terms with negative powers.
b. (of a discontinuity) noting that the function is discontinuous and has no limit at the point. Cf. removable (def. 2).
n.
6. a basic, indispensable, or necessary element; chief point: Concentrate on essentials rather than details.
[1300-50; ME essencial < ML essencialis for LL essentialis. See ESSENCE, -AL1]
Syn. 1. fundamental, basic, inherent, intrinsic, vital. See necessary. 2. ESSENTIAL, INHERENT, INTRINSIC refer to that which is in the natural composition of a thing. ESSENTIAL suggests that which is in the very essence or constitution of a thing: Oxygen and hydrogen are essential in water. INHERENT means inborn or fixed from the beginning as a permanent quality or constituent of a thing: properties inherent in iron. INTRINSIC implies belonging to the nature of a thing itself, and comprised within it, without regard to external considerations or accidentally added properties: the intrinsic value of diamonds.
Ant. 2. incidental, extraneous, extrinsic; accidental.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Essential — Es*sen tial ([e^]s*s[e^]n sjal), a. [Cf. F. essentiel. See {Essence}.] 1. Belonging to the essence, or that which makes an object, or class of objects, what it is. [1913 Webster] Majestic as the voice sometimes became, there was forever in it an… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • essential — I (inherent) adjective basal, basic, basilar, basilary, elemental, fundamental, immanent, implicit, integral, intrinsic, intrinsical, main, primary II (required) adjective basic, binding, called for, chief, compulsory, critical, crucial, demanded …   Law dictionary

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  • essential — [ə sen′shəl, isen′shəl] adj. [ME essencial < LL essentialis: see ESSENCE] 1. of or constituting the intrinsic, fundamental nature of something; basic; inherent [an essential difference] 2. absolute; complete; perfect 3. absolutely necessary;… …   English World dictionary

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  • Essential — Es*sen tial ([e^]s*s[e^]n sjal), n. 1. Existence; being. [Obs.] Milton. [1913 Webster] 2. That which is essential; first or constituent principle; as, the essentials of religion. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Essentiāl — (essentiell, lat.), wesentlich, unumgänglich notwendig. Essentialia (Essentialien), wesentliche Dinge, wesentliche Bestandteile; essentialia negotii, in der Rechtssprache die wesentlichen Bestandteile eines Rechtsgeschäfts, die vorhanden sein… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • essential — essential, ale, aux [esɑ̃sjal, o] adj. ÉTYM. Mil. XXe; de essence, d après le lat. essentialis, refait pour éviter l ambiguïté d essentiel « de l essence », « très important ». ❖ ♦ Philos. De l essence. ❖ CONTR. Accidentel, existentiel …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • essential... — essential...,   Schreibvariante für essenzial …   Universal-Lexikon

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