essential

adj.

1. Constituting or being part of the essence of something; inherent.
2. Basic or indispensable; necessary: essential ingredients. See synonyms at indispensable.
3. Medicine. Of, relating to, or being a dysfunctional condition or a disease whose cause is unknown: essential hypertension.
4. Biochemistry. Being a substance that is required for normal functioning but cannot be synthesized by the body and therefore must be included in the diet: essential amino acids.

n.

1. Something fundamental.
2. Something necessary or indispensable.

essentiality es·sen'ti·al'i·ty (-shē-ăl'ĭ-tē) or es·sen'tial·ness n.
essentially es·sen'tial·ly adv.

adjective

1. Constituting or forming part of the essence of something: basic, constitutional, constitutive, fundamental, integral, vital. See be, surface/depth.
2. Of or being an irreducible element: basic, elemental, elementary, fundamental, primitive, ultimate, underlying. See surface/depth.
3. Incapable of being dispensed with: indispensable, necessary, needful, required, requisite. See important/unimportant, necessary/unnecessary.

noun

1. A fundamental irreducible constituent of a whole: basic, element, fundamental, rudiment (often used in plural). Idioms: part and parcel. See part/whole.
2. Something indispensable: condition, must, necessity, need, precondition, prerequisite, requirement, requisite, sine qua non. See necessary/unnecessary.

adj

Definition: basic, fundamental
Antonyms: atypical, minor, peripheral, secondary

adj

Definition: important, vital, necessary
Antonyms: accessory, auxiliary, inessential, minor, nonessential, optional, secondary, subsidiary, unimportant

n

Definition: necessity, basic
Antonyms: accessory, auxiliary, nonessential, subsidiary, throwaway, trivia

---

1. constituting the necessary or inherent part of a thing; giving a substance its peculiar and necessary qualities.
2. indispensable; required in the diet, as essential fatty acids.
3. idiopathic; self-existing; having no obvious external exciting cause.

• e. fatty acids (EFAs) — the unsaturated fatty acids, linoleic and α-linolenic, cannot be synthesized by animals but are essential nutrients that must be supplied in the diet.
• e. fatty acid deficiency — in dogs and cats, there is scaling, alopecia and seborrhea. Poor wound healing, immunosuppression and infertility have also been reported.

IN BRIEF: Most important or absolutely necessary.

Flour is an essential ingredient in cookies.

Common misspelling(s) of essential

• essentual
• essesital
• essencial
• esential

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - uundværlig, basal, af afgørende betydning, essentiel, idiopatisk
n. - væsentlig forudsætning, absolut betingelse, hovedpunkt

Nederlands (Dutch)
essentieel, onmisbaar, wezenlijk, idiopathisch/ uniek (ziekte), hoofdzaak, onontbeerlijk iets

Français (French)
adj. - essentiel, indispensable à, capital, fondamental, de première nécessité, (Chim) essentiel
n. - qualité indispensable, l'essentiel, pour l'essentiel, de manière générale, rudiments

Deutsch (German)
adj. - erforderlich, wesentlich, notwendig
n. - Wesentliche, Hauptsache

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - ουσιαστικός, ουσιώδης, στοιχειώδης, απαραίτητος

Italiano (Italian)
essenziale, fondamentale

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - essencial

Русский (Russian)
неотъемлемая часть, предмет первой необходимости, обязательный, основной, существенный, незаменимый, определяющий

Español (Spanish)
adj. - esencial, indispensable, primordial, elemental
n. - elementos esenciales, esencia, lo esencial

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - absolut nödvändig, väsentlig, grundläggande, grund-

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
必要的, 本质的, 重要的, 要素, 本质, 要点

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 必要的, 本質的, 重要的
n. - 要素, 本質, 要點

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 본질의, 필수의
n. - 본질적 요소

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 欠くことのできない, 不可欠の, 本質的な, エキスの
n. - 本質的要素, 要点

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) جوهري, أساسي‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮נחוץ, חיוני, יסודי, תמציתי, עיקרי‬
n. - ‮דבר או יסוד בסיסי או הכרחי‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.

Essential Oil	essential oils
Essential Dress	lacoste essential