Or at least enough to know that a mountain of dead lemmings wasn't exactly a dire crisis, just a massive pain in the butt.

Now he knew two things of vital importance: this was not a social call, and it presaged some dire crisis.

Inherited from his predecessor's administration was a dire financial crisis, severe enough that the school had to borrow money to pay for student labor.

Chrysler's own mini-van was an innovative team project carried out during a dire financial crisis.

However, the city soon experienced its most dire fiscal crisis yet.

They were in dire crisis and expecting a teenager to solve their problems on his own, which is clearly unfair.

"We're out of that dire crisis, but supplies still remain low," she said.

We have to make sure that this dire economic crisis does not turn into an even more dreadful political crisis.

"It would seem we have a dire crisis if we cannot recover the papers."

But in a dire crisis, she had enough emergency medical training to be called upon for help with triage.