a critical state; especially the point at which a nuclear reaction is self-sustaining
is a type of (narrower)
a crisis situation or point in time when a critical decision must be made
"at that juncture he had no idea what to do"; "he must be made to realize that the company stands at a critical point"
is an attribute of
at or of a point at which a property or phenomenon suffers an abrupt change especially having enough mass to sustain a chain reaction
"a critical temperature of water is 100 degrees C--its boiling point at standard atmospheric pressure"; "critical mass"; "go critical"
is an attribute of
not critical; not at a point of abrupt change