See Also: vital(dictionary)
Vital(medicine)
vital red(medicine)
vital(dictionary)
vital statistics(medicine)
vital tooth(medicine)
vital tripod(medicine)
vital ultraviolet(medicine)
Vital Statistics(money)
VITAL BIOTECH(finance)

vital (iou)



vital adjective & noun. LME.
[As adjective from Old & mod. French, from Latin vitalis, from vita life + -AL1; as noun from Latin vitalia use as noun of neut. pl. of vitalis.]
A. adjective.
Pertaining to or constituted by the animating force, power, or principle present in all living things and which is essential for continued existence. LME.
She Chinese medicine uses herbs to enhance..the flow of vital energy.
Full of life or energy; lively. Formerly also, animate, living. LME.
Shelley That bright shape of vital stone which drew the heart out of Pygmalion. Guardian A stocky..vital, robust..and humorous man.
Maintaining, supporting, or sustaining life. Now chiefly poet. LME.
Wordsworth Every draught of vital breath. C. Bernheimer He associates their menstrual cycle with..the circulation of vital fluids.
a. Of parts, organs, etc.: essential or necessary to life; performing the functions indispensable to the maintenance of life. L15.
b. transf. Of a part or component: essential to the functioning of the whole. Now passing into sense 8. M17.
Guardian One of the country's largest businesses..a vital part of the economy.
Of, relating to, or characteristic of life; inherent in living things or organic bodies. M16.
G. Bird To explain vital phenomena by the..laws governing dead matter. Quarterly Death, the state in which the vital functions and powers have come to an end.
b. Geology. Produced or formed by living organisms; of organic origin. Now rare. M19.
c. Biology. Of stains or their use: used or carried out on living tissue. E20.
Imparting life or vigour; invigorating; life-giving. Chiefly poet. L16.
E. Young O Joy..! twice three years I have not felt thy vital beam.
Affecting life, esp. detrimentally; fatal to or destructive of life. arch. E17.
S. J. Pratt The surgeon..assures me the wound is vital.
Essential to the existence of something; absolutely indispensable or necessary; extremely important, crucial. Freq. foll. by for, to. E17.
A. J. P. Taylor Surprise was supposed to be a vital ingredient of war. Guardian Rather than being optional, exercise is vital for health. W. Perriam It's vital to keep active.
b. Paramount, supreme, very great. E19.
H. Macmillan It was of vital importance to keep the railways going.
Special collocations: vital air Chemistry (now Hist.) = OXYGEN. vital capacity Physiology the capacity of the lungs as determined by measuring the air expired between maximum inspiration and maximum expiration. vital flame = vital spark below. vital force = eLAN vital. vital power the power to sustain life. vital signs clinical measurements, spec. pulse rate, temperature, respiration rate, and blood pressure, that indicate the state of a patient's essential body functions. vital spark life-force. vital spirit(s) = SPIRIT noun 11a. vital statistics (a) statistics concerned with or relating to human life, as births, deaths, etc.; (b) colloq. the measurements of a woman's bust, waist, and hips.
b. noun.
In pl. & (rare) sing. The parts or organs of the body essential to life or on which life depends, esp. the brain, heart, lungs, and liver. LME.
STAP my vitals!
W. Cowper To transfix him where the vitals wrap The liver. B. Pym Hunger gnawed at his vitals. fig.: L. Mann Rents through which the vitals of the sofa oozed.
In pl. Parts or features essential or indispensable to something; essentials. M17.
Pall Mall Gazette The Parnellite leaders approached the vitals of the issue.
vitally adverb in a vital manner; now esp. in a way or to an extent which is vital, absolutely essential, or paramount; essentially, indispensably: M17.