omnipresent
Americanadjective
adjective
Synonym Usage
Omnipresent, ubiquitous refer to the quality of being everywhere. Omnipresent emphasizes in a lofty or dignified way the power, usually divine, of being present everywhere at the same time, as though all-enveloping: Divine law is omnipresent. Ubiquitous is applied to that which seems to appear in many and all sorts of places, or in an undignified or humorous way is “all over the place,” often when unwanted: A bore seems to be ubiquitous.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of omnipresent
First recorded in 1600–10; from Medieval Latin omnipraesent- (stem of omnipraesēns ), equivalent to Latin omni- omni- + praesent- present 1
Explanation
Omnipresent describes something that's everywhere at once, like a deity. If your parents are constantly monitoring what you do, you may feel like they're omnipresent — and look forward to going to college somewhere far, far away. You might recognize the prefix omni-, meaning "all," from words like omnipotent ("all-powerful") or omniscient ("all-knowing"). Add it to present, and voilà, you have a word for something that's present all the time. You can't hide from an omnipresent being, and you can't escape an omnipresent smell. Language purists might prefer that a bad smell be described as ubiquitous ("turning up everywhere") and save the word omnipresent for the divine.
Vocabulary lists containing omnipresent
100 SAT words Beginning with "O"
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Vocabulary Video Contest (2013) - List 1
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This Week In Culture: August 24–August 30, 2019
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"However, the omnipresent wireless networks might become a nearly comprehensive surveillance infrastructure with one concerning property: they are invisible and raise no suspicion."
From Science Daily • May 23, 2026
It would be easier to believe if he hadn’t littered every song with claims that his enemies were omnipresent and all-powerful, while also being sniveling dweebs.
From Salon • May 21, 2026
Her daughter, now 12, has grown up with the disease omnipresent in her life - Walters says the family was having frank conversations about dying when she was as young as three.
From BBC • May 1, 2026
Legendary street artist and activist Shepard Fairey was omnipresent at the High Desert Art Fair, which unfolded in and around Pioneertown over two unseasonably hot days last weekend.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 31, 2026
Continually, new specials came into existence, created out of regulars by the omnipresent dust.
From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
