chronic
adjective
What chronic means
Lasting for a long time or happening again and again, usually describing an illness.
She has chronic back pain.
Diabetes is a chronic condition.
Test yourself
Five questions about chronic
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Question 1 of 5Meaning
What does chronic mean?
A chronic illness or pain does not go away quickly; it stays for months or years, or it keeps coming back again and again.
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Question 2 of 5Situation
Mark has had pain in his back almost every day for the last ten years. His back pain is…
Pain that lasts for years is chronic. Acute pain starts suddenly and does not last long, and contagious describes illnesses that pass from one person to another.
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Question 3 of 5Gap
My uncle has ___ heart disease and has taken the same tablets for twenty years.
A disease that lasts for twenty years is chronic. A sudden or temporary problem is short, and heart disease is not contagious, because it cannot pass between people.
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Question 4 of 5Opposite
Which word is the opposite of chronic, when you talk about an illness?
A chronic illness lasts a long time, while an acute one starts suddenly and is over quickly. Mild and serious describe how bad an illness is, not how long it lasts.
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Question 5 of 5Correct use
Which sentence uses chronic correctly?
Chronic goes before the noun, as in chronic back pain, and it describes a problem that lasts a long time. Before ill you need the adverb chronically, and three days is too short.
Keys 1 to 4 pick an answer, Enter goes on.
Chronic in a sentence
5 more examples of chronic in everyday situations.
- At the doctor
If the pain has lasted for months, the doctor may call it chronic.
- In the news
Chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease cost the health system billions every year.
- At work
The hospital has a chronic shortage of nurses on the night shift.
- As an adverb
Her mother is chronically ill and needs help at home every day.
- With friends
He’s had chronic back problems since the car accident.
How to use chronic
Chronic is the opposite of acute. A chronic illness lasts a long time; an acute one starts suddenly and is short. A cold is acute, and asthma is usually chronic.
Chronic also describes bad situations that keep happening: chronic traffic.
Forms
- chronicallyadverb
Patterns
- a chronic illness / condition / disease
- chronic pain / fatigue
- be chronically ill
- suffer from a chronic + noun
Common mistakes with chronic
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NotIt is a cronic illness.
SayIt is a chronic illness.
The word comes from Greek, so it is spelled with ch at the start, like chemist, even though it sounds like a k.
Chronic or acute or serious?
- chronic or acute
- An acute illness starts suddenly and is often short or severe, like a sudden infection; a chronic illness lasts a long time or keeps coming back.
- chronic or serious
- Chronic is about time, not about how bad something is. A chronic condition can be mild, and a serious illness can be short, so do not use chronic to mean very bad.
Chronic is a C1 word. Is that your level? Take the level test or count the words you know.
Chronic word family and collocations
The words that go with chronic, so you can use it in a whole phrase.
Common collocations
- chronic pain
- a chronic illness
- chronic fatigue
- chronic condition
- chronically ill
Word family
- chronic (adjective)
- chronically (adverb)
Similar words
- long-lasting
Opposites
- acute
Questions about chronic
What is the opposite of chronic?
In medicine the opposite is acute. An acute illness comes on suddenly and usually lasts a short time, while a chronic illness lasts for months or years.
How long does pain have to last to be chronic?
Doctors often call pain chronic when it lasts longer than about three months, or when it keeps coming back over a long period.
Does chronic mean very bad?
In medical English it means long-lasting, not severe. In informal British English chronic can also mean very bad, as in “The traffic was chronic”, but this is slang.
The word before
Do you still remember update?
One question about the word from 20 October. Remembering a word a day later helps it stay.
One question
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What does update mean?
An update is a newer version of an app or program that you install to fix problems, close security holes or add small new things.
Keys 1 to 4 pick an answer.
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A doctor’s written instruction that lets you get a particular medicine from a pharmacy. -
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Treatment for a physical or mental problem, often involving regular sessions with a trained professional. -
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