Synonyms of being

being 1 of 3

adjective

as in breathing

Related Words

• breathing
• existing
• existent
• living
• modern
• recent
• present
• contemporary
• newfangled
• up-to-date
• modernistic
• new
• mod
• ultramodern
• current
• extant
• ongoing
• space-age
• supermodern
• new-fashioned
• red-hot
• present-day
• instant
• immediate

Dissimilar Words

• future
• coming
• over
• unborn
• terminated
• up
• through
• finished
• ended
• completed
• done
• old
• concluded
• obsolete
• past
• ancient
• former
• archaic
• dated
• antiquated
• out-of-date
• antique
• old-time
• old-fashioned
• outworn
• antediluvian
• erstwhile
• musty
• bygone
• ago
• passé
• fusty
• noncontemporary
• oldfangled

being

2 of 3

noun

ˈbē(-i)ŋ 

1

as in person

a member of the human race

no one has the right to enslave another being

Synonyms & Similar Words

• person
• life
• man
• guy
• creature
• thing
• individual
• human
• sort
• human being
• bird
• soul
• body
• customer
• fish
• party
• baby
• character
• duck
• specimen
• egg
• face
• scout
• devil
• personality
• cookie
• mortal
• fellow
• personage
• stiff
• head
• bod
• slob
• wight
• self
• son of man
• somebody
• brother
• neighbor
• homo
• celebrity
• hominid
• humanoid
• fellowman

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• animal
• beast
• brute
• critter
• beastie

2

as in object

one that has a real and independent existence

new parents are typically in awe at having created this separate being

Synonyms & Similar Words

• object
• entity
• reality
• substance
• something
• thing
• individual
• commodity
• subject
• existent
• body
• individuality
• matter
• material
• integer
• quantity
• stuff

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• nonentity

3

as in essence

the quality or qualities that make a thing what it is

music is such a large part of her being that she could never give up performing

Synonyms & Similar Words

• essence
• nature
• substance
• soul
• manifestation
• stuff
• heart
• name of the game
• core
• aspect
• essentiality
• property
• center
• quintessence
• spirit
• feature
• attribute
• incarnation
• personification
• quiddity
• marrow
• seat
• epitome
• keynote
• pith
• kernel
• embodiment
• gist
• alpha and omega
• nub

being

3 of 3

verb

present participle of be

1

as in living

to have life

stories that begin with the familiar line "once upon a time there was a beautiful maiden"

Synonyms & Similar Words

• living
• existing
• ruling
• breathing
• surviving
• subsisting
• continuing
• flourishing
• kicking
• leading
• keeping (on)
• enduring
• lasting
• persisting
• abiding
• moving
• holding on
• running on
• thriving
• holding up
• prospering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• dying
• departing
• succumbing
• expiring
• disappearing
• perishing
• vanishing
• evaporating
• passing away
• ending
• stopping
• ceasing
• quitting
• discontinuing
• dying (down)
• subsiding
• waning
• moderating
• ebbing
• abating
• desisting
• letting up

2

as in sitting

to occupy a place or location

we'll be there waiting for you

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sitting
• standing
• lying
• remaining
• residing
• waiting
• resting
• staying
• bearing
• awaiting
• overlooking
• posting
• commanding
• hanging around
• sticking around
• tarrying
• dwelling
• stationing

3

as in ranking

to take or have a certain position within a group arranged in vertical classes

our school's football team is first in its division

Synonyms & Similar Words

• ranking
• placing
• standing
• rating
• grading
• seeding
• counting
• classifying
• separating
• grouping
• categorizing
• sorting
• installing
• classing
• setting
• codifying
• compartmentalizing
• instating

4

as in happening

to take place

the party is next Saturday

Synonyms & Similar Words

• happening
• coming
• occurring
• doing
• passing
• cooking
• coming down
• transpiring
• coming off
• going on
• coming about
• going down
• chancing
• befalling
• happing
• betiding
• rising
• developing
• coming to pass
• arising
• proceeding
• resulting
• materializing
• shaping (up)
• intervening
• following
• coming up
• breaking
• springing (up)
• cropping (up)
• falling out
• turning out
• going off

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of being

Noun

Guy appears in the four-time Academy Award-winning 2025 film Sinners, which helped introduce the blues and foundational aspects of his being to young people who may never have had the chance to encounter either otherwise. — Chris Barilla, PEOPLE, 20 Aug. 2026

Green plants, being our planet’s early manifested life, provide essential food to all living beings because of their ability to capture energy from the sun and utilize it to power all life processes. — Literary Hub, 20 Aug. 2026

Enclosed by a network of 13th-century walls, the narrow streets of old York host myriad awe-inspiring relics from its pre-industrial past, perhaps the most famous being York Minster, one of the most beautiful Gothic cathedrals anywhere. — Paul Jebara, Condé Nast Traveler, 18 Aug. 2026

There are several types of telescope — the main two being refractors and reflectors — as well as Dobsonians and catadioptrics (Schmidt-Cassegrains and Maksutov-Cassegrains). — Jamie Carter, Space.com, 18 Aug. 2026

Phrases Containing being

• Supreme Being
• being (as or as how or that)
• for the time being
• human being