chronic
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈkɹɒn.ɪk/
note: of Canada
ipa: /ˈkɹɑ.nɪk/
note: of the US
ipa: /ˈkɹɒn.ɪk/
ipa: /ˈkɹɔn.ɪk/
ipa: /ˈkɹɒn.ək/
ipa: [ˈkɹɔ̟n.ək]
rhymes: -ɒnɪk
Forms: form: more chronic
form: most chronic
form: chronick
Etymology: From chronical, from Old French cronike, from Latin chronicus, from Ancient Greek χρονικός (khronikós, “of time”), from χρόνος (khrónos, “time”). By surface analysis, chron- + -ic.
Senses: examples: text: chronic unemployment; chronic poverty; chronic anger; chronic life
text: Peer group support is important to displaced homemakers. The Displaced Homemakers' Network has done excellent work in helping women see that their problems do not have to be chronic.
ref: 1980, Ruth Harriet Jacobs, Integrating Displaced Homemakers into the Economy, page 14:
text: It was a casual sneer, obviously one of a long line. There was hatred behind it, but of a quiet, chronic type, nothing new or unduly virulent, and he was taken aback by the flicker of amazed incredulity that passed over the younger man's ravaged face.
ref: 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 8, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
text: Chronic mismanagement in the dugout and in the boardroom has meant the scale of the job now is as big as it has ever been.
ref: 2018 May 4, Tom English, “Steven Gerrard: A 'seriously clever or recklessly stupid' Rangers appointment”, in BBC Sport:
text: These concerns were shared by other SNP women who told the Guardian there was a chronic lack of support from the party, including for those with younger families.
ref: 2025 March 23, Libby Brooks and Severin Carrell, “‘Hostile environment’ drives many of SNP’s female MSPs to step down before 2026 vote”, in The Guardian:
glosses: Of a problem, that continues over an extended period of time.
examples: text: chronic cough; chronic headache; chronic illness
text: In 2016, the CDC established guidelines for prescribing narcotics for chronic pain.
ref: 2017 March 20, Nadia Kounang, “Prescriptions may hold clues to who gets hooked on opioids, study says”, in CNN:
topics: medicine
sciences
glosses: Prolonged or slow to heal.
examples: text: Chronic patients must learn to live with their condition.
glosses: Of a person, suffering from an affliction that is prolonged or slow to heal.
examples: text: He's a chronic smoker.
glosses: Inveterate or habitual.
examples: text: That concert was chronic.
glosses: Very bad, awful.
examples: text: They left him in a chronic condition.
glosses: Extremely serious.
examples: text: That was cool, chronic in fact.
glosses: Good, great; "wicked".
Synonyms: sense: that continues over an extended period of time
word: diuturnal
word: prolonged
word: lasting
sense: very bad, awful
word: abysmal
word: terrible
word: bad
sense: good, great
word: gnarly
word: splendid
word: excellent
Derived terms: achronic
allochronic
chronically
chronic bee paralysis virus
chronic beryllium disease
chronic bronchitis
chronic cellular dehydration
chronic condition
chronic Covid
chronic COVID syndrome
chronic disease
chronic fatigue syndrome
chronic granulomatous disease
chronic illness
chronicity
chronicization
chronic Lyme
chronic Lyme disease
chronic myeloid leukemia
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
chronic skin-picking
chronic suppurative otitis media
chronic toxicity
chronic traumatic encephalopathy
chronic wasting disease
crunk
heterochronic
hydrochronic
mesochronic
monochronic
nonchronic
panchronic
parachronic
prechronic
semichronic
subchronic