critical mass

 Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++朗文当代英语 5++LDOCE 5++朗文 5++

Related topics: Physics, Power

ˌcritical ˈmass noun [countable, uncountable]  1. HPthe amount of a substance that is necessary for a nuclear chain reaction to start 〔核连锁反应的〕临界质量2  the smallest number of people or things that are needed in order for something to happen or be possible 〔发生某事所需的人或物的〕最低数量 How can we get a critical mass of people involved to keep the club running? 我们怎样才能保证有足够的人数让俱乐部经营下去呢？

Examples from the Corpus

critical mass• Movie crowds create commercial critical mass, especially after hours.• Some thing or things have to happen for a microbe to escape its previously harmless ecological niche and reach critical mass.• The clusters helped recruit businesses, created the critical mass needed to start programs, and provided work-based learning opportunities for students.• He used his position power to effect the critical mass that was necessary to make the change.• By using critical mass and monolithic buying power, we can change the way we do business.From Longman Business Dictionarycritical massˌcritical ˈmass noun [singular]COMMERCEMARKETING the minimum number of users, buyers etc that is necessary for a product to succeed or for something to happencritical mass ofA communications system is of no value to the users unless there is a critical mass of users.

ˌcritical ˈmass nounChineseSyllable  

substance of amount Corpus necessary the a Business that is

critical mass
ˌcritical ˈmass noun [uncountable and countable]
1. the amount of a substance that is necessary for a nuclear chain reaction to start
2. the smallest number of people or things that are needed in order for something to happen or be possible:
    How can we get a critical mass of people involved to keep the club running?

critical massBrE /ˌkrɪtɪkl ˈmæs/ 🔊NAmE /ˌkrɪtɪkl ˈmæs/ 🔊 noun [uncountable, singular] (physics 物理) the smallest amount of a substance that is needed for a nuclear chain reaction to take place （核链式反应的）临界质量the minimum amount of resources, number of customers, etc. needed to start or support a project or an activity, or the minimum size that a project or activity needs to be in order to be successful （启动或支持项目或活动所需的）最小资源量，最低人数；（项目或活动成功所需的）最小规模◆The company needs one million customers to reach critical mass and start making a profit.公司需要 100 万客户才能达到临界规模并开始赢利。◆TV via Internet could only be developed once a critical mass of households had broadband access.在足够多的家庭拥有宽带接入时，网络电视才能开发。