| No. | Item | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | acute | severe or intense |
| 2. | alarming | causing serious concern |
| 3. | all-consuming | dominating all attention |
| 4. | all-important | most important of all |
| 5. | awkward | hard to handle smoothly |
| 6. | brutal | extremely harsh or severe |
| 7. | burning | needing urgent attention |
| 8. | catastrophic | disastrously serious |
| 9. | central | most important or main |
| 10. | chief | most important |
| 11. | compulsory | required; not optional |
| 12. | concerning | causing worry or importance |
| 13. | conclusive | serving to settle something |
| 14. | consequential | important in effect or result |
| 15. | crucial | extremely important or decisive |
| 16. | deciding | settling the outcome |
| 17. | decisive | determining the outcome |
| 18. | defining | strongly shaping identity or outcome |
| 19. | desperate | very serious and urgent |
| 20. | determinative | deciding the result |
| 21. | dire | extremely serious or urgent |
| 22. | disturbing | causing unease or concern |
| 23. | drastic | extreme and far-reaching |
| 24. | epochal | extremely important historically |
| 25. | essential | completely necessary; very important |
| 26. | exigent | pressing; demanding immediate action |
| 27. | extreme | very great or intense |
| 28. | far-reaching | having broad effects |
| 29. | fatal | causing death or disaster |
| 30. | fateful | having important consequences |
| 31. | foremost | most important or prominent |
| 32. | foundational | serving as a basic support |
| 33. | fraught | filled with tension or risk |
| 34. | fundamental | forming the essential base |
| 35. | grave | seriously bad or important |
| 36. | hard | difficult or severe |
| 37. | harmful | causing damage or injury |
| 38. | harsh | severe or difficult |
| 39. | hazardous | dangerous or risky |
| 40. | high-stakes | involving serious consequences |
| 41. | historic | important in history |
| 42. | immediate | requiring action at once |
| 43. | imperative | absolutely necessary to do |
| 44. | important | having great significance |
| 45. | indispensable | absolutely necessary |
| 46. | integral | necessary to make whole |
| 47. | intense | very strong or serious |
| 48. | key | of central importance |
| 49. | leading | most important or influential |
| 50. | lethal | able to cause death |
| 51. | life-and-death | involving survival or disaster |
| 52. | linchpin | essential holding element |
| 53. | major | greater in importance |
| 54. | make-or-break | decisive for success or failure |
| 55. | mandatory | required by rule or need |
| 56. | material | important and relevant |
| 57. | meaningful | having real importance |
| 58. | menacing | suggesting serious danger |
| 59. | momentous | very important and consequential |
| 60. | mortal | causing death; deadly |
| 61. | necessary | needed or required |
| 62. | needed | necessary or required |
| 63. | ominous | suggesting serious trouble |
| 64. | overriding | more important than others |
| 65. | paramount | more important than anything else |
| 66. | perilous | full of danger |
| 67. | pivotal | of crucial importance |
| 68. | preeminent | surpassing others in importance |
| 69. | pressing | requiring immediate action |
| 70. | prime | first in importance |
| 71. | principal | main or most important |
| 72. | problematic | causing difficulty or concern |
| 73. | requisite | required or necessary |
| 74. | risky | involving possible danger |
| 75. | ruinous | causing severe damage |
| 76. | salient | most noticeable and important |
| 77. | sensitive | requiring careful treatment |
| 78. | serious | severe or significant |
| 79. | severe | very serious or harsh |
| 80. | significant | important enough to matter |
| 81. | stark | severe and unmistakable |
| 82. | strategic | important to overall plans |
| 83. | supreme | highest in importance |
| 84. | tense | full of strain or danger |
| 85. | terminal | leading to death or end |
| 86. | thorny | difficult and sensitive |
| 87. | threatening | showing danger or harm |
| 88. | time-sensitive | dependent on prompt action |
| 89. | touch-and-go | uncertain and risky |
| 90. | touchy | easily upset or problematic |
| 91. | troubling | causing worry or distress |
| 92. | unsafe | not safe |
| 93. | unstable | likely to change badly |
| 94. | urgent | needing immediate attention |
| 95. | vexed | difficult and problematic |
| 96. | vital | absolutely necessary or essential |
| 97. | volatile | likely to change suddenly |
| 98. | watershed | critical turning point |
| 99. | weighty | important and serious |
| 100. | worrying | causing concern |
