adj · neutral

vital

/ˈvaɪtəl/VI·tal

Band 6-7task2speaking

extremely important or necessary for life or success

Examples

Access to clean water is vital for public health.

It is vital that policymakers consider long-term effects.

Good communication between staff is vital to the company's success.

Band 8 sentence

For public health, maintaining vaccination programmes is absolutely vital to prevent outbreaks.

Collocations

  • vital role
  • vital importance
  • vital for / to

Word family

vital adjvitality nvitally adv

Common mistakes

People write 'very vital' to intensify.vital (already strong); use 'very important' if needed

It is vital that he goes.It is vital that he go.

Say it for a higher band

5important6crucial7+vital

Synonyms

essential

crucial

Easily confused

essential

Having basic literacy is essential for most jobs.

Related words

Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.

In -al

Learn it with its set