Main Entry: sub·stance

Pronunciation: \ˈsəb-stən(t)s\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin substantia, from substant-, substans, present participle of substare to stand under, from sub- + stare to stand — more at stand

Date: 14th century

1 a : essential nature : essence b : a fundamental or characteristic part or quality c Christian Science : god 1b
2 a : ultimate reality that underlies all outward manifestations and change b : practical importance : meaning, usefulness <the…bill—which will be without substance in the sense that it will authorize nothing more than a set of ideas — Richard Reeves>
3 a : physical material from which something is made or which has discrete existence b : matter of particular or definite chemical constitution c : something (as drugs or alcoholic beverages) deemed harmful and usually subject to legal restriction <possession of a controlled substance> <substance abuse>
4 : material possessions : property <a family of substance>

— sub·stance·less \-ləs\ adjective

— in substance : in respect to essentials : fundamentally