Wordul · all words

adjective · 2 syllables · /'vaɪ.təl/

VITAL

What does "VITAL" mean?

Absolutely necessary or essential; relating to life.

Meanings

  1. Essential; needed for something to succeed or continue. Trust is vital to any partnership.
  2. Necessary for or relating to life. The heart and lungs are vital organs. technical
  3. Full of energy and liveliness. Even at ninety she remained vital and curious.
  4. The body's basic life-sign measurements such as pulse and temperature (used in plural). The nurse checked his vitals every hour. informal

Did you know?

  • 'Vital signs' are literally 'signs of life': the term draws on Latin 'vita', and the classic four are temperature, pulse, breathing rate, and blood pressure.

Word origin

From Latin 'vitalis' (of life), from 'vita' (life); via Old French into Middle English.

Remember it

VITAL contains 'VITA', Latin for life - if it's vital, your life leans on it.

A little poem

Cut every word that does not earn its breath;
what's vital is what stays when nothing's left.

couplet

Wordplay

  • The nurse said my vitals were strong and my priorities weren't. Same word, very different chart.

What it teaches

Call a thing vital only if its loss would stop the heart of the matter; everything else is preference.

Quick facts

What does VITAL mean?

Absolutely necessary or essential; relating to life.

Is VITAL a valid word?

Yes — VITAL is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.

How many letters is VITAL?

VITAL has 5 letters and 2 syllables.

Where does VITAL come from?

From Latin 'vitalis' (of life), from 'vita' (life); via Old French into Middle English.

What can VITAL teach us?

Call a thing vital only if its loss would stop the heart of the matter; everything else is preference.

How players do

Be the first to solve it.

Play today's Wordul →