Synonyms Examples Word Origin
See more synonyms for essence on Thesaurus.com the basic, real, and invariable nature of a thing or its significant individual feature or features: Freedom is the very essence of our democracy. a substance obtained from a plant, drug, or the like, by distillation, infusion, etc., and containing its characteristic properties in concentrated form. an alcoholic solution of an essential oil ; spirit. a perfume; scent. Philosophy the inward nature, true substance, or constitution of anything, as opposed to what is accidental, phenomenal, illusory, etc. something that exists, especially a spiritual or immaterial entity. Show More
in essence , essentially; at bottom, often despite appearances: For all his bluster, he is in essence a shy person. of the essence , absolutely essential; critical; crucial: In chess, cool nerves are of the essence. Show More
Origin of essence 1350–1400; Middle English essencia <
Medieval Latin, for
Latin essentia. See
esse ,
-ence Related forms self-es·sence , noun Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words for essence core ,
substance ,
nature ,
root ,
basis ,
character ,
soul ,
element ,
crux ,
meaning ,
principle ,
aspect ,
reality ,
quality ,
spirit ,
structure ,
lifeblood ,
scent ,
kernel ,
point Examples from the Web for essence Contemporary Examples of essence They are both viewed in essence like eating Brussels sprouts.
Humans spent a long time domesticating cattle, and what they were trying to do, in essence , was de-domesticate them.
The essence of what Whitney is to me is a beautiful woman, not a beautiful black woman.
They are now in essence a sisterhood joined together by a vile incident.
The essence of nearly every Disney film is that women need saving, preferably by a man from a superior social and economic class.
Historical Examples of essence Plainly the central idea of secession is the essence of anarchy.
The essence of freedom is that each of us shares in the shaping of his own destiny.
The essence of the continental system is its gigantic scale.
Then, perhaps, says another, the essence of a bull lies in confusion of ideas.
Then take out the jar and strain the essence of the beef into a bowl.
British Dictionary definitions for essence the characteristic or intrinsic feature of a thing, which determines its identity; fundamental nature the most distinctive element of a thing the essence of a problem a perfect or complete form of something, esp a person who typifies an abstract quality he was the essence of gentility philosophy the unchanging and unchangeable nature of something which is necessary to its being the thing it is; its necessary properties Compare accident (def. 4) the properties in virtue of which something is called by its name the nature of something as distinct from, and logically prior to, its existence theol an immaterial or spiritual entity the constituent of a plant, usually an oil, alkaloid, or glycoside, that determines its chemical or pharmacological properties an alcoholic solution of such a substance a substance, usually a liquid, containing the properties of a plant or foodstuff in concentrated form vanilla essence a rare word for perfume in essence essentially; fundamentally of the essence indispensable; vitally important Show More
Word Origin for essence C14: from Medieval Latin essentia, from Latin: the being (of something), from esse to be
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for essence n. late 14c., essencia (respelled late 15c. on French model), from Latin essentia "being, essence," abstract noun formed (in imitation of Greek ousia "being, essence") from essent- , present participle stem of esse "to be," from PIE *es- (cf. Sanskrit asmi , Hittite eimi , Old Church Slavonic jesmi , Lithuanian esmi , Gothic imi , Old English eom "I am;" see be ). Originally "substance of the Trinity," the general sense of "basic element of anything" is first recorded in English 1650s, though this is the base meaning of the first English use of essential .
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
