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IMPORTANCE
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
The quality of being important and worthy of note
Example:
the importance of a well-balanced diet
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("importance" is a kind of...):
value (the quality (positive or negative) that renders something desirable or valuable)
Attribute:
important; of import (of great significance or value)
unimportant (not important)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "importance"):
big deal (anything of great importance or consequence)
magnitude (relative importance)
account (importance or value)
momentousness (utmost importance)
prominence (relative importance)
greatness; illustriousness (the property possessed by something or someone of outstanding importance or eminence)
significance (the quality of being significant)
essentiality; essentialness (basic importance)
urgency (pressing importance requiring speedy action)
weight; weightiness (the relative importance granted to something)
Antonym:
unimportance (the quality of not being important or worthy of note)
Derivation:
important (of extreme importance; vital to the resolution of a crisis)
important (of great significance or value)
important (important in effect or meaning)
Sense 2
Meaning:
A prominent status
Example:
a person of importance
Synonyms:
grandness; importance
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Hypernyms ("importance" is a kind of...):
standing (social or financial or professional status or reputation)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "importance"):
accent; emphasis (special importance or significance)
primacy (the state of being first in importance)
Derivation:
important (having authority or ascendancy or influence)
Context examples:
Isabella now entered the room with so eager a step, and a look of such happy importance, as engaged all her friend's notice.
(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)
Because of their importance in cancer causation, worldwide efforts to successfully target mutant RAS genes are being pursued.
(Cellular immunotherapy targets a common human cancer mutation, NIH)
The importance of Cbl in the down-regulation of growth factor signaling means that it will have an important role in cellular transformation and the development and treatment of cancer.
(EGF Receptor Downregulation by CBL Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)
A matter of interest or importance.
(Concern, NCI Thesaurus)
The clinical importance of HER2 cannot be overstated.
(ERBB2 Signaling Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)
An ability to understand the meaning or importance of something (or the knowledge acquired as a result).
(Comprehension, NCI Thesaurus)
The importance assigned to a particular remark.
(Comment Value, NCI Thesaurus)
But I remember that this importance was a kind of satisfaction to me, when I walked in the playground that afternoon while the boys were in school.
(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)
"Whatever it is, I can swear that it is of importance to us," said I. "I could read that on his face as he gave it."
(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
Since my rebuff of yesterday I have a sort of empty feeling; nothing in the world seems of sufficient importance to be worth the doing....
(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)
