priority
What comes first
Priority is what comes first or matters most.
Something given priority receives attention before other things: Safety is our top priority.
The plural priorities refers to what someone considers most important: You need to get your priorities straight.
Priority can also mean the right to precede others: Emergency vehicles have priority at intersections.
To prioritize is to rank things by importance.
Quality of mattering
- weightMeasure of heaviness
- relevanceState of mattering here
- consequenceResult of an action
- gravityMutual mass attraction
criticality · primacy · emphasis · value · seriousness · substance · centrality · materiality
Ordered succession of elements
- queueOrdered waiting line
- orderMethodical arrangement or request
- successionFollowing in order
- antecedencePrior position in sequence
foremost · lead · front · ahead · before · preeminence · superiority · seniority
Requiring immediate attention
- immediateHappening without delay
- criticalExpressing disapproval or importance
- time-sensitiveRequiring prompt action
- deadlineTime limit for completion
expedite · urgent · crisis · emergency · rush · haste · swift · imminent
Ranked authority structure
- orderMethodical arrangement or request
- levelsHeights or ranked stages
- tieredHaving multiple levels
- stratificationDivision into distinct levels
gradation · echelons · ladder · pyramid · top · high · low · first
Preferential treatment of some
- partialityUnfair favor toward some
- biasUnfair inclination or prejudice
- predilectionPreexisting preference or bias
- inclinationDisposition toward something
leaning · choice · selection · favored · privileged · special treatment · cherry-picking · weighted
significance
Quality of mattering
- weightMeasure of heaviness
- relevanceState of mattering here
- consequenceResult of an action
gravity · criticality · primacy · emphasis · value · seriousness · substance · centrality · materiality · pertinence
sequence
Ordered succession of elements
- queueOrdered waiting line
- orderMethodical arrangement or request
- successionFollowing in order
antecedence · foremost · lead · front · ahead · before · preeminence · superiority · seniority · right-of-way
pressing
Requiring immediate attention
- immediateHappening without delay
- criticalExpressing disapproval or importance
- time-sensitiveRequiring prompt action
deadline · expedite · urgent · crisis · emergency · rush · haste · swift · imminent · accelerate
hierarchy
Ranked authority structure
stratification · gradation · echelons · ladder · pyramid · top · high · low · first · classification
favoritism
Preferential treatment of some
- partialityUnfair favor toward some
- biasUnfair inclination or prejudice
- predilectionPreexisting preference or bias
inclination · leaning · choice · selection · favored · privileged · special treatment · cherry-picking · weighted · fast-track
- strategystrategy, grand strategy, tactics, tactic, tactical
- Exclusivityexclusive, elite, VIP, members-only, private
- importanceimportance, significance, consequence, weight, gravity
- rankingsrankings, first, college rankings, second, third
- shippingshipping, cargo ships, container ships, freight, package
- taskstask, tasks, chore, errand, to-dos
priorityafterthought
Idea added belatedly
unimportance · triviality · insignificance · nonpriority · negligibility
prioritysubsequence
Ordered partial selection
last · deferral · last place · postponement · coming after
- top priorityMost important item
- high priorityRequiring prompt action
- top prioritiesMost important tasks
- low priorityNot requiring immediate attention
- priority listItems ranked by urgency
- first priorityMost urgent matter
prioritize, priorities, prioritized, prioritizing, prioritizes, prioritise, prioritization, prioritises, prioritising