acute

modif.

1. Pointed

   sharp-pointed, spiked, keen; see sharp 2.

2. Crucial

   critical, crucial, decisive, severe, serious, grave, dangerous, important, vital, intense, pressing, urgent, desperate, dire, drastic; see also crucial.

3. Shrewd

   clever, astute, penetrating; see intelligent 1, judicious.

4. Sharp

   severe, keen, cutting; see intense, painful 1.

5. Discerning

   discriminating, penetrating, sensitive, perceptive, keen, sharp; see also observant 1.

acute suggests severe intensification of a condition that is sharply approaching a climax an acute shortage of workers; critical is applied to a crisis or a turning point that will decisively determine an outcome the situation was critical; a critical point in the negotiations; crucial comes into contrast with critical where a trial determining a course of action rather than a decisive turning point is involved a crucial debate on foreign policy See also syn. study at sharp.