- a vital or decisive stage, point, etc (often in the phrase the crux of the matter)
- a baffling problem or difficulty
- a rare word for cross
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
cru•ces
(kro̅o̅′sēz),USA pronunciation n.
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026- a pl. of crux.
crux /krʌks/USA pronunciation
n. [countable], pl. crux•es, cru•ces
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- /ˈkrusiz/.USA pronunciation
- the central or most important point;
essence: The crux of the matter is that he's going to resign unless we do something about it.
crux
(kruks),USA pronunciation n., pl. crux•es, cru•ces
Crux (kruks),USA pronunciation n., [gen.] Cru•cis (kro̅o̅′sis).USA pronunciation n., [gen.] Cru•cis
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(kro̅o̅′sēz).USA pronunciation
- a vital, basic, decisive, or pivotal point:The crux of the trial was his whereabouts at the time of the murder.
- a cross.
- something that torments by its puzzling nature;
a perplexing difficulty.
- Neo-Latin crux (interpretum) (commentators') torment, a difficult passage in a text; compare crucial
- Latin: stake, scaffold, or cross used in executions, torment; figurative senses perh.
- 1635–45
- 1. essence, heart, core, gist.
Crux (kruks),USA pronunciation n., [gen.] Cru•cis (kro̅o̅′sis).USA pronunciation n., [gen.] Cru•cis
- AstronomySee Southern Cross.
- Latin: a cross
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
crux /krʌks/ n ( pl cruxes, cruces /ˈkruːsiːz/)
'cruces' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):