esse

Esse refers to existence or essence.

Esse means that something has a physical form or is not imaginary or fictional. It exists, as in During an existential crisis, a man may question life itself and even doubt the esse of reality.

Esse can also mean essence. It is the very nature of something or its defining quality, as in Freedom and choice are the esse of our democracy.

Example: The priest gave a sermon in which he said that humanity’s existence, our esse, is a gift from God.

The first records of the English esse come from around 1600. It comes directly from the Latin esse, meaning “to be.”

Esse is very rarely used in English. In philosophy or theology, esse is sometimes used to discuss deep questions about what it means to actually exist as a person or in discussions of the existence and divinity of God. Outside of that, the word esse is likely to be found in a Latin quote.

What are some synonyms for esse?

• being
• existence
• essence
• nature

What are some words that share a root or word element with esse? 

• essence

What are some words that often get used in discussing esse?

• philosophy
• theology
• existential
• reality
• metaphysics
• spirit

Esse is very rarely used. On social media, esse is often used by people quoting (or pretending to quote) philosophers.

Nothing that we can know or even think can exist without the mind, for we can only think reproductions of sensations, and the esse of these is percipi.

— C. S. Peirce (@CSPeirceSpeaks) January 11, 2021

We cannot here indeed say that the esse of that which is reflected-on is a percipi since its being is such that it does not need to be perceived in order to exist.

— Being and Nothingness – Jean-Paul Sartre (@randomsartre) December 2, 2020

And if it be objected that the view which denies a distinct reality to the formal element of a relation, its esse ad, is a distinct and separate reality.

— Clarence Hawkes (@The_Postmodern) March 8, 2019

Which of the following words is a synonym of esse?

A. nothingness
B. existence
C. absence
D. void