Entry Word: substance

Function: noun

Meaning: 1 the basic elements from which something can be developed <many thought that the mayorʼs speech lacked substance because specific proposals for solving the cityʼs problems were few> — see making
2 the quality or qualities that make a thing what it is <tireless caring and nurturing that was the very substance of maternal love> — see essence
3 the total of one's money and property <measure the worth of a person not by his earthly substance but by his good deeds> — see wealth 1
4 one that has a real and independent existence <the question of whether the soul is a substance entirely independent of the body> — see entity