being

American  

[bee-ing] / ˈbi ɪŋ /

noun

1. the fact of existing; existence (as opposed to nonexistence).

2. conscious, mortal existence; life.

   Our being is as an instantaneous flash of light in the midst of eternal night.

3. substance or nature.

   of such a being as to arouse fear.

4. something that exists.

   inanimate beings.

5. a living thing.

   strange, exotic beings that live in the depths of the sea.

6. a human being; person.

   the most beautiful being you could imagine.

7. (initial capital letter) God.

8. Philosophy.

   1. that which has actuality either materially or in idea.

   2. absolute existence in a complete or perfect state, lacking no essential characteristic; essence.

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conjunction

1. Nonstandard. since; because; considering that (often followed by as, as how, orthat ).

   Being it's midnight, let's go home.

   Being as how you cooked supper, I'll do the dishes.

being British  

/ ˈbiːɪŋ /

noun

1. the state or fact of existing; existence

2. essential nature; self

   she put her whole being into the part

3. something that exists or is thought to exist, esp something that cannot be assigned to any category

   a being from outer space

4. a person; human being

5. (in the philosophy of Aristotle) actuality Compare becoming

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being Idioms  

1. see for the moment (time being); other things being equal.

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Other Word Forms

• nonbeing noun
• superbeing noun

Etymology

Origin of being

First recorded in 1250–1300; be + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

Eva's childhood would also see her regularly travelling across Europe to attend different schools, being taken in by various people as she moved around the continent.

From BBC

"As far as I know, they've been taken to the city of Belgorod and are being held at an unknown location."

From BBC

Pooh's enormous fame still generates a substantial income for the area to this day, with £450,000 of public money being used to fund a programme of events locally to mark the anniversary.

From BBC

A total of 408 personnel from the government's disaster agency AFAD, police and health services are at the scene, the minister said, while the real-time imagery from the area is being relayed by drones.

From Barron's

That trend is being driven in part by the Japanese government’s push to get companies to boost their share prices and operational efficiency.

From The Wall Street Journal