urgent

B1 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈɝ.d͡ʒənt/ UK /ˈɜː.d͡ʒənt/ See IPA manual

Freq #2745

Meanings

1

adj
Needing immediate attention or action.

An urgent appeal was sent out for assistance.
2

adj
Showing that something is very important and must be dealt with now.

There was an urgent tone in her voice.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · needing immediate attention... pressing burning

2 adj · showing that something is... insistent

More acute bad clamant crying dire exigent imperious instant pressive rash severe

Opposites

evergreen nonurgentunurgent

Word family

Forms urgency

Derived forms nonurgenturgencyurgently

Related forms urge

Appears in

Phrases (3)

See all

Simplified etymology

Urgent entered English through Old French from Latin urgere, meaning “to press” or “drive.” The same Latin verb also gave English urge.

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French urgent (“pressing, impelling”), from Latin urgēns, from urgēre (“to press”), from Proto-Indo-European *werǵʰ- (“bind, squeeze”). Equivalent to urge + -ent. Related to German würgen (“to strangle”), Lithuanian ver̃žti (“to string, tighten, constrict”), Russian (poetic) отверза́ть (otverzátʹ, “to open”, literally “to untie”), Polish otwierać (“to open”)) and English worry, wring, wreak, wreck.

urgent Middle French urgēns Latin *werǵʰ- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# urgent

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ˈɝ.d͡ʒənt/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈɜː.d͡ʒənt/
**Frequency rank:** 2745

## Meanings
1. Needing immediate attention or action.
2. Showing that something is very important and must be dealt with now.

## Examples
- An urgent appeal was sent out for assistance.
- There was an urgent tone in her voice.

## Synonyms
- acute
- bad
- clamant
- crying
- dire
- exigent
- imperious
- instant
- pressing
- pressive
- rash
- severe

## Antonyms
- evergreen
- nonurgent
- unurgent

## Derived Forms
- nonurgent
- urgency
- urgently

## Related Forms
- urge

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: urgent
- Root: urgēns
- Root: *werǵʰ-

## Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French urgent (“pressing, impelling”), from Latin urgēns, from urgēre (“to press”), from Proto-Indo-European *werǵʰ- (“bind, squeeze”). Equivalent to urge + -ent. Related to German würgen (“to strangle”), Lithuanian ver̃žti (“to string, tighten, constrict”), Russian (poetic) отверза́ть (otverzátʹ, “to open”, literally “to untie”), Polish otwierać (“to open”)) and English worry, wring, wreak, wreck.

## AI Etymology
Urgent is borrowed from Middle French urgent (“pressing, impelling”), from Latin urgēns, from urgēre (“to press”), from Proto-Indo-European *werǵʰ- (“bind, squeeze”). Equivalent to urge + -ent. Related to German würgen (“to strangle”), Lithuanian ver̃žti (“to string, tighten, constrict”), Russian (poetic) отверза́ть (otverzátʹ, “to open”, literally “to untie”), Polish otwierać (“to open”)) and English worry, wring, wreak, wreck. In present-day use, it can mean needing immediate attention or action, or showing that something is very important and must be dealt with now.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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