Question

refer to \youth and tobacco use\ in the lesson for a complete version of this text:
what does the word critical mean in this sentence?
preventing tobacco use among youth is critical to ending the tobacco epidemic in the united states.

very simple

somewhat

.highly important

secondary

Explanation:

To determine the meaning of "critical" in the sentence, we analyze the context. The sentence is about preventing youth tobacco use to end the tobacco epidemic. "Very simple" doesn't fit as preventing youth tobacco use isn't simple. "Somewhat" is too mild. "Secondary" means less important, which is opposite. "Highly important" makes sense because preventing youth tobacco use is a key, essential step to end the epidemic.

Answer:

C. highly important