Definition of "critical" []

• Inclined to judge severely and find fault. (adjective)
• Characterized by careful, exact evaluation and judgment: a critical reading. (adjective)
• Of, relating to, or characteristic of critics or criticism: critical acclaim; a critical analysis of Melville's writings. (adjective)
• Forming or having the nature of a turning point; crucial or decisive: a critical point in the campaign. (adjective)
• Of or relating to a medical crisis: an illness at the critical stage. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "[Warburton explained this as "the critical juncture"] How the _critical juncture_ is the _spy o 'the time_ I know not, but I think my own conjecture right."
• "Those who do not, are generally subjects who source their information about the world from heavily censored publications and broadcast media, and may never have heard the term critical thinking."
• "I am assumming it was the editors here that decided the term critical should be used in the title."