Definition

1. Noun:
   • The state or fact of being real, of having being or actuality: The condition of having objective reality or being alive and present in the world.
   • Everything that exists; the totality of being: The collective sum of all entities, the universe or cosmos.
   • A manner or way of living: A particular life, especially one lived under specific, often difficult, conditions.

Examples of Usage

• The state or fact of existing:
  • The existence of life on other planets is still unproven.
  • The company came into existence in 1995.
• Everything that exists:
  • Scientists seek to understand the fundamental laws governing existence.
  • The painting depicts a fantastical creature from another realm of existence.
• A manner of living:
  • He led a solitary existence in the mountains.
  • The refugees faced a precarious existence in the camp.

Advanced Usage

• "To come into existence": to begin to exist, to be created or formed.
  • The new law will come into existence next month.
• "In existence": currently existing, extant.
  • This is one of the oldest manuscripts in existence.
• "A struggle for existence": (often from biology/sociology) the competition for survival and resources.
  • Darwin wrote about the struggle for existence in nature.

Variants and Related Words

• Exist (verb): to have being or reality; to live.
  • Do you believe ghosts exist?
• Existent (adjective): having existence; existing; current.
  • We must deal with the existent conditions, not ideal ones.
• Nonexistence (noun): the state of not existing.
  • The theory posits the nonexistence of absolute time.

Synonyms

• Being: The state or quality of having existence.
• Actuality: The state of being actual or real.
• Presence: The state or fact of being present.
• Life: The condition that distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth and functional activity.

Antonyms

• Nonexistence: The state of not existing.
• Inexistence: (Less common) Lack of existence.
• Absence: The state of being away or not present.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• A hand-to-mouth existence: A way of life where one has just enough money or food to survive from day to day.
  • After losing his job, he lived a hand-to-mouth existence.
• The meaning of existence: The purpose or significance of life or being.
  • Philosophers have long debated the meaning of existence.

Noun

1. everything that exists anywhere
   • they study the evolution of the universe
   • the biggest tree in existence
2. the state or fact of existing
   • a point of view gradually coming into being
   • laws in existence for centuries