crisis
nounCEFR B2High frequency
What does “crisis” mean in English?
crisis — a critical turning point or period of acute difficulty
crisis — a critical turning point or period of acute difficulty (la crisis económica/política, en tiempos de crisis, gestionar la crisis)
Example sentences
La crisis de representación democrática no se resuelve con elecciones solas: requiere reformas institucionales profundas.
The crisis of democratic representation is not resolved by elections alone: it requires deep institutional reforms.
En tiempos de crisis, las sociedades tienden a replegarse sobre sí mismas y a desconfiar del extranjero.
In times of crisis, societies tend to retreat into themselves and distrust the outsider.
El gobierno tardó demasiado en reconocer la magnitud de la crisis, lo que agravó sus consecuencias.
The government took too long to recognise the scale of the crisis, which worsened its consequences.
How to use it
La crisis means 'crisis' — a critical turning point or period of acute difficulty. It is one of the most productive B2 nouns in political, economic, and social discourse. Key collocations: la crisis económica/política/climática, una crisis de gobernanza/identidad/representación, en tiempos de crisis, superar/gestionar/agravar la crisis. Crucially: crisis is INVARIABLE — both singular and plural use the same form: la crisis / las crisis (note: not *las crises). The plural takes las but the word does not change.
Common mistake
Critical grammar point: la crisis / las crisis — the word does NOT change in the plural (invariable noun). *Las crises is wrong. This affects agreement: 'las múltiples crisis económicas' (plural adjective + invariable noun). Crisis de identidad (identity crisis) vs crisis nerviosa (nervous breakdown — more informal). In formal academic writing, use gestionar la crisis (manage) not *arreglar la crisis (fix — too informal).