essence

American  

[es-uhns] / ˈɛs əns /

noun

essences plural

1. the basic, real, and invariable nature of a thing or its significant individual feature or features.

   Freedom is the very essence of our democracy.

   Synonyms:

   core, soul, principle, heart, lifeblood, spirit, substance

2. a substance obtained from a plant, drug, or the like, by distillation, infusion, etc., and containing its characteristic properties in concentrated form.

3. an alcoholic solution of an essential oil; spirit.

4. a perfume; scent.

5. Philosophy. the inward nature, true substance, or constitution of anything, as opposed to what is accidental, phenomenal, illusory, etc.

6. something that exists, especially a spiritual or immaterial entity.

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idioms

1. of the essence, absolutely essential; critical; crucial.

   In chess, cool nerves are of the essence.

2. in essence, essentially; at bottom, often despite appearances.

   For all his bluster, he is in essence a shy person.

essence British  

/ ˈɛsəns /

noun

1. the characteristic or intrinsic feature of a thing, which determines its identity; fundamental nature

2. the most distinctive element of a thing

   the essence of a problem

3. a perfect or complete form of something, esp a person who typifies an abstract quality

   he was the essence of gentility

4. philosophy

   1. the unchanging and unchangeable nature of something which is necessary to its being the thing it is; its necessary properties Compare accident

   2. the properties in virtue of which something is called by its name

   3. the nature of something as distinct from, and logically prior to, its existence

5. theol an immaterial or spiritual entity

6. 1. the constituent of a plant, usually an oil, alkaloid, or glycoside, that determines its chemical or pharmacological properties

   2. an alcoholic solution of such a substance

7. a substance, usually a liquid, containing the properties of a plant or foodstuff in concentrated form

   vanilla essence

8. a rare word for perfume

9. essentially; fundamentally

10. indispensable; vitally important

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• self-essence
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• essences
  plural

Etymology

Origin of essence

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English essencia, from Medieval Latin, from Latin essentia, equivalent to esse + -ence

Explanation

Essence is whatever most sums up the heart and soul of something, its truest most indispensable qualities. The essence of Las Vegas is poker chips and dreams; the essence of Johnny Cash is black clothing and country music. Essence can be a physical detail, or, just as commonly, the abstract idea or meaning of something. The essence of Lady Chatterly's Lover might be its revolutionary eroticism, or the essence of religion its devotion to God. Essence can also mean the concentrate obtained from a flower or plant for flavoring. If you've chewed strawberry-flavored bubblegum you're probably amazed at how it truly is the very essence of strawberries.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

essence essences

In essence, that could mean AI is less like a self-checkout machine, which automates away the need for cashiers, and more like a laser level that helps a surveyor make accurate measurements.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

BBC Sport understands there have to be "exceptional circumstances" to justify the effort and that, in these cases, time might have been of the essence with a need for prompt testing.

From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026

The religion is "the essence of social stratification", marapu priest Umbu Remi Deta told AFP.

From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026

I feel very happy to bring a bit of our culture, our slang, our sound and our essence to the U.S. for my fans that haven’t had a chance to see a show of mine.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026

“Bits and pieces of his essence remain, but nothing you could put together again. I suppose some injuries even Tartarus cannot heal.”

From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan

"One of the essences of this game is being able to figure out different ways of using each of these echoes," he says.

From BBC ● Nov. 11, 2024

Further, although chemically derived vanilla essences are available cheaply, they do not match the flavor of natural vanilla extract, and the demand for the latter continues to remain high.

From Science Daily ● May 16, 2024

The exhibition also includes tools for cutting and pressing the plants and extracting their essential essences.

From Reuters ● May 30, 2023

In addition, there’s something of a disconnect between the younger and older Tom’s personalities; their essences don’t fully align.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 21, 2022

For Plato, the sublunary world was a distorted projection of the world of essences.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

Related Words

• aspect
• basis
• bottom line
• character
• core
• crux
• element
• lifeblood
• meaning
• nature
• principle
• quality
• reality
• root
• soul
• spirit
• structure
• substance