existence

noun

ex·​is·​tence ig-ˈzi-stən(t)s 

1

a

: the state or fact of having being especially independently of human consciousness and as contrasted with nonexistence

the existence of other worlds

b

: the manner of being that is common to every mode of being

c

: being with respect to a limiting condition or under a particular aspect

2

: actual or present occurrence

existence of a state of war

3

a(1)

: the totality of existent things

(2)

: a particular being

all the fair existences of heaven

—John Keats

b

: sentient or living being : life

c

: reality as presented in experience

d

obsolete : reality as opposed to appearance

Synonyms

• reality
• presence
• prevalence
• subsistence

Examples of existence in a Sentence

She began to doubt the existence of God.

the existence of UFO's is something that people continue to argue about

Recent Examples on the Web

However, Earth itself, as well as the rest of our Solar System, needed to be brought into existence in order for there to be life on Earth at all. —Ethan Siegel, Big Think, 16 Sep. 2025

Taken together, these videos offer a snapshot of a population that regards their olfactory existence with near-cosmic horror. —Franklin Schneider, The Atlantic, 16 Sep. 2025

This icon shape has served the iPhone and iPad reasonably well for their entire existence, and Apple had already embraced the rounded square for most of its icons back in the Big Sur update. —ArsTechnica, 15 Sep. 2025

Spacecraft surveys and telescope observations have revealed the existence of a rare, heavy form of water in the Venusian atmosphere — a telltale sign that regular water used to be abundant on the planet. —Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, borrowed from Middle French existence, existance, borrowed from Late Latin existentia, exsistentia, noun derivative of existent-, existens/exsistent-, exsistens "having being, existent"

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3d

Phrases Containing existence

• come into existence
• go out of existence
• struggle for existence

Rhymes for existence

• assistance
• consistence
• desistance
• insistence
• persistence
• resistance
• subsistence
• coexistence
• nonexistence
• distance
• magnetoresistance

Kids Definition

existence

noun

ex·​ist·​ence

ig-ˈzis-tən(t)s

1

: the fact or the state of having being or of being real

the largest animal in existence

2

: the state of being alive : life

owed my existence to a doctor's skill