e|mer|gen|cy

e|mer|gen|cy «ih MUR juhn see», noun, plural -cies, adjective.

–n.

1. a sudden need for immediate action: »

I keep a box of tools and a fire extinguisher in my car for use in an emergency.

2. a situation in which such a need arises: »

a national emergency.

–adj.

for a time of sudden need: »

an emergency exit, an emergency fund. The surgeon performed an emergency operation. The Administration has invoked the emergency injunction of the Taft-Hartley Law only three times (New York Times).

Synonym Study noun. 1, 2 Emergency, crisis mean a trying or dangerous time or state of affairs. Emergency refers to a sudden or unexpected situation that calls for action without delay: »

The failure of the city's electric power caused an emergency.

Crisis refers to a situation in which grave alternatives, sometimes life or death, hang in the balance and whose outcome will be decisive: »

The floods brought on a crisis for the farmers.