important

Also found in: Thesaurus, Financial, Acronyms, Idioms, Wikipedia.

im·por·tant

(ĭm-pôr′tnt)

adj.

1. Strongly affecting the course of events or the nature of things; significant: an important message that must get through; close friends who are important to me.

2. Having high social rank or influence; prominent: government leaders and other important people.

3. Having or suggesting a consciousness of high position or authority; authoritative: recited the decree with an important air.

4. Obsolete Importunate.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Medieval Latin importāns, important-, present participle of importāre, to mean, from Latin, to import; see import.]

im·por′tant·ly adv.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

important

(ɪmˈpɔːtənt)

adj

1. of great significance or value; outstanding: Voltaire is an important writer.

2. of social significance; notable; eminent; esteemed: an important man in the town.

3. (when postpositive, usually foll by to) specially relevant or of great concern (to); valued highly (by): your wishes are important to me.

4. an obsolete word for importunate

[C16: from Old Italian importante, from Medieval Latin importāre to signify, be of consequence, from Latin: to carry in; see import]

imˈportantly adv

Usage: The use of more importantly as in more importantly, the local council is opposed to this proposal has become very common, but many people still prefer to use more important

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

im•por•tant

(ɪmˈpɔr tnt)

adj.

1. of much or great significance or consequence: an important event in world history.

2. of considerable distinction: an important scientist.

3. self-important.

4. Obs. importunate.

[1580–90; < Medieval Latin important-, s. of importāns, present participle of importāre to be of consequence, weigh, Latin: to carry in, import; see import]

im•por′tant•ly, adv.

usage: Both more important and more importantly occur at the beginning of a sentence in all varieties of Standard English: More important (or More importantly), her record as an administrator is unmatched. Objections are raised against more importantly on the grounds that the phrase more important is an elliptical form of “What is more important,” a construction in which the adverb importantly cannot occur. Nevertheless, more importantly is the more common expression, esp. in speech; it probably developed by analogy with other sentence-modifying adverbs, as fortunately and regrettably.

important

Something that is important is very significant, valuable, or necessary.

This is the most important part of the job.

It is important to study for your exams.

Be Careful!
Don't use 'important' to talk about a large sum or amount. Use considerable, substantial, or large.

He was paid a substantial sum of money for the information.

A considerable amount of rain had fallen.

Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

Adj.	1.	important - of great significance or value; "important people"; "the important questions of the day" of import essential - basic and fundamental; "the essential feature" significant, important - important in effect or meaning; "a significant change in tax laws"; "a significant change in the Constitution"; "a significant contribution"; "significant details"; "statistically significant" valuable - having great material or monetary value especially for use or exchange; "a valuable diamond" unimportant - not important; "a relatively unimportant feature of the system"; "the question seems unimportant"
	2.	important - important in effect or meaning; "a significant change in tax laws"; "a significant change in the Constitution"; "a significant contribution"; "significant details"; "statistically significant" significant important, of import - of great significance or value; "important people"; "the important questions of the day" meaningful - having a meaning or purpose; "a meaningful explanation"; "a meaningful discussion"; "a meaningful pause"
	3.	important - of extreme importance; vital to the resolution of a crisis; "a crucial moment in his career"; "a crucial election"; "a crucial issue for women" crucial critical - being in or verging on a state of crisis or emergency; "a critical shortage of food"; "a critical illness"; "an illness at the critical stage" decisive - determining or having the power to determine an outcome; "cast the decisive vote"; "two factors had a decisive influence" essential - basic and fundamental; "the essential feature"
	4.	important - having authority or ascendancy or influence; "an important official"; "the captain's authoritative manner" authoritative influential - having or exercising influence or power; "an influential newspaper"; "influential leadership for peace"
	5.	important - having or suggesting a consciousness of high position; "recited the decree with an important air"; "took long important strides in the direction of his office" immodest - having or showing an exaggerated opinion of your importance, ability, etc; "brash immodest boasting"

important

adjective

1. significant, critical, substantial, grave, urgent, serious, material, signal, primary, meaningful, far-reaching, momentous, seminal, weighty, of substance, salient, noteworthy an important economic challenge to the government
significant minor, trivial, insignificant, secondary, unnecessary, needless, negligible, unimportant, inconsequential, undistinctive

2. (often with to) valued, loved, prized, dear, essential, valuable, of interest, treasured, precious, esteemed, cherished, of concern, highly regarded Her sons are the most important thing in her life.

3. powerful, leading, prominent, commanding, supreme, outstanding, high-level, dominant, influential, notable, big-time (informal), foremost, eminent, high-ranking, authoritative, major league (informal), of note, noteworthy, pre-eminent an important figure in the media world

4. main, major, chief, head, prime, central, necessary, basic, essential, premier, primary, vital, critical, crucial, supreme, principal, paramount, foremost, pre-eminent The important thing is that you rest.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

important

adjective

1. Having great significance:

big, consequential, considerable, historic, large, material, meaningful, monumental, significant, substantial.

2. Having or exercising influence:

consequential, influential, powerful, weighty.

Translations

belangrik

مُهِممُهِمٌّ هامّ

важенважнаважно

important

důležitý

vigtig

wichtig bedeutend Belang erheblich

σημαντικός σπουδαίος

grava

importante serio

olulinetähtis

tärkeä

important importante majeur considérable grave

važan

fontos

mikilvægur

importante rilevante trascendente vistoso

影響力のある重要な

영향력이 큰중요한

gravis

su pasipūtimusvarbu

nozīmīgssvarīgs

important

важный значительный ответственный

pomemben

viktigbetydelsefull

maarufu

สำคัญ

önemli mühim

важливийважнийзначний

quan trọng

重要的

important

[ɪmˈpɔːtənt] ADJ → importante
it is important that → es importante que
it sounds/looks important → parece importante
to try to look important (pej) → darse tono or importancia
he told Henry to touch nothing, and more important, to say nothing → le dijo a Henry que no tocase nada y, lo que era más importante, que no dijese nada
to become important → cobrar importancia
your opinion is equally important → tu opinión es igualmente importante or es de igual importancia
to make sb feel important → hacer que algn se sienta importante
it is important for everyone to be here on time → es importante que todo el mundo esté aquí a la hora
the important thing is → lo importante es ...
the most important thing in life → lo más importante en la vida
it was important to me to know → para mí era importante saberlo

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

important

[ɪmˈpɔː^rt^ənt] adj

(= crucial) [point, factor, difference, decision] → important(e)
it is important to ... → il est important de ..., il importe de ...
It is important to eat sensibly → Il est important de manger de manière raisonnable., Il importe de manger de manière raisonnable.
It's important to remain calm → Il importe de rester calme., Il est important de rester calme.
it is important for them to understand that ... → il est important qu'ils comprennent que ...
it is important that ... → il importe que ... + subj, il est important que ... + subj
It is important that teachers get proper training → Il importe que les enseignants soient convenablement formés., Il est important que les enseignants soient convenablement formés.
it's not important → c'est sans importance, ce n'est pas important
the most important thing
Her children are the most important thing in her life → Ses enfants sont pour elle la chose la plus importante dans sa vie.
to be important to sb (emotionally) [person] → compter beaucoup pour qn
Of course, you are important to me → Mais bien-sûr, tu comptes beaucoup pour moi.; [thing] → être important(e) pour qn, compter beaucoup pour qn
His trees and plants were almost as important to him as his music → Ses arbres et ses plantes étaient presque aussi importants pour lui que sa musique., Ses arbres et ses plantes comptaient presque autant pour lui que sa musique.

[person] → important(e)

important

adj → wichtig; (= significant also) → bedeutend; (= influential) → einflussreich, bedeutend; that’s not important → das ist unwichtig; it’s not important (= doesn’t matter) → das macht nichts; the (most) important thing is to stay fit → das Wichtigste or die Hauptsache ist, fit zu bleiben; to try to look important → sich (dat) → ein gewichtiges Aussehen geben; that letter looks important → dieser Brief scheint wichtig zu sein; it sounds important → es hört sich an, als ob es wichtig sei; he’s trying to sound important → er spielt sich auf; to make somebody feel important → jdm das Gefühl geben, er/sie sei wichtig

adv = importantly c

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

important

[ɪmˈpɔːt/ənt] adj → importante
it's not important → non ha importanza
it is important that → è importante che + sub
to try to look important (pej) → darsi arie d'importanza

important

(imˈpoːtənt) adjective

(negative unimportant) having great value, influence or effect. an important book/person/occasion; It is important that you arrive here on time.

imˈportantly adverb

imˈportance noun

matters of great importance.

important

→ مُهِمٌّ, هامّ důležitý vigtig wichtig σημαντικός importante tärkeä important važan importante 影響力のある, 重要な 영향력이 큰, 중요한 belangrijk viktig ważny importante важный viktig สำคัญ önemli quan trọng 重要的

important

a. importante.

References in classic literature ?

It may even be given as a general rule, that the less any part of the organisation is concerned with special habits, the more important it becomes for classification.

We must not, therefore, in classifying, trust to resemblances in parts of the organisation, however important they may be for the welfare of the being in relation to the outer world.

View in context

"Why, what is important?" said Kitty, looking into her face with inquisitive wonder.

"Oh, there's so much that's important," said Varenka, smiling.

View in context

The first purposes of every such book must be to outline the development of the literature with due regard to national life, and to give appreciative interpretation of the work of the most important authors.

View in context

Some of the most important old men were the center of groups which even strangers approached respectfully to hear the voices of well-known men.

View in context

IN REVIEWING the defects of the existing Confederation, and showing that they cannot be supplied by a government of less energy than that before the public, several of the most important principles of the latter fell of course under consideration.

View in context

"So he is going to see her about `something important,' Ned?"

View in context

He lived greatly respected for his piety, and not a little distinguished as a sectary; was intrusted by his associates with many important political stations; and died just in time to escape the knowledge of his own poverty.

View in context

This is perhaps the most important of all the four parts.

View in context

Nevertheless, as upon the good conduct of the harpooneers the success of a whaling voyage largely depends, and since in the American Fishery he is not only an important officer in the boat, but under certain circumstances (night watches on a whaling ground) the command of the ship's deck is also his; therefore the grand political maxim of the sea demands, that he should nominally live apart from the men before the mast, and be in some way distinguished as their professional superior; though always, by them, familiarly regarded as their social equal.

View in context

I do not ask you to bring it yourself, because I have a far more important commission to intrust to you.