existence
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existence
- /ɛɡˈzɪs.təns/ US
- /ɪɡˈzɪs.təns/ US
Rhymes with -ɪstəns
Where it comes from
From Middle English existence, from Old French existence, from Late Latin existentia (“existence”), from existēns, from existō, exsistō (“I am, I exist”), from ex (“out”) + sistere (“to set, place”) (related to stare (“to stand, to be stood”)), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *stísteh₂ti, from the root *steh₂- (“stand”). Cognate with Spanish existencia, French existence, German Existenz. Displaced native Old English understandennes (literally, "understanden-ness").
Morphologically exist + -ence.
noun existences
-
The state of being, existing, or occurring; beinghood.
In order to destroy evil, we must first acknowledge its existence.
Similar: presence
- Empirical reality; the substance of the physical universe. (Dictionary of Philosophy; 1968)
Similar: being, beinghood, beingness, dasein, existence, hereness, subsistence · Opposite: nonexistence, nothingness, inexistence
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: beingness, world, nature, creation, macrocosm, being, universe, cosmos, esse, exist, phenomenon, existing, reality, presence, fact, existential
noun
Similar: being, beinghood, beingness, dasein, existence, hereness, subsistence · Opposite: nonexistence, nothingness, inexistence
Translations
Every language
noun state of being, existing, or occurring
| Español | existencia |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 존재 jonjae, 실존 siljon, 실재 siljae |
| 日本語 | 存在 sonzai, 実存 jitsuzon, 実在 jitsuzai |
| 中文 | 存在 cúnzài |
| हिन्दी | अस्तित्व astitva, भाव bhāv, हस्ती hastī, वजूद vajūd |
| Português | existência |
| Français | existence |
| Deutsch | Existenz, Dasein, Sein |
| Italiano | esistenza |
| Ελληνικά | ύπαρξη ýparxi |
| Română | existență |
| Русский | существова́ние suščestvovánije, бытие́ bytijé, экзисте́нция ekzistɛ́ncija |
| Tiếng Việt | tồn tại |
| العربية | وُجُود wujūd, كَيْنُونَة kaynūna |
| עברית | קִיּוּם kiyúm |
Talk about this word "existence." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/existence. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. existence. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/existence "existence." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/existence.Cite this
@misc{existence_2026,
title = {existence},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/existence},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
