esencial
adjectiveCEFR B2
What does “esencial” mean in English?
essential — absolutely necessary, indispensable
essential — absolutely necessary, indispensable (elemento esencial, condición esencial)
Example sentences
Es esencial que todos los participantes hayan leído la documentación antes de la reunión para que el debate sea productivo.
It is essential that all participants have read the documentation before the meeting for the debate to be productive.
El agua potable es esencial para la supervivencia humana y debe ser tratada como un derecho universal.
Drinking water is essential for human survival and must be treated as a universal right.
How to use it
Esencial means 'essential' — indispensable, fundamentally necessary. Stronger than necesario (merely needed) and similar to imprescindible. Common constructions: es esencial + infinitive / es esencial que + subjunctive. Ser: always ser. Collocations: elemento esencial, condición esencial, papel esencial, componente esencial.
Common mistake
Esencial ≠ básico: esencial points to indispensability, while básico points to being foundational or simple. 'Un conocimiento esencial' = cannot be omitted; 'un conocimiento básico' = a minimum starting level.