existentialism

American  

[eg-zi-sten-shuh-liz-uhm, ek-si-] / ˌɛg zɪˈstɛn ʃəˌlɪz əm, ˌɛk sɪ- /

noun

Philosophy.

1. a philosophical movement that stresses the individual's unique position as a self-determining agent responsible for making meaningful, authentic choices in a universe seen as purposeless or irrational: existentialism is associated especially with Heidegger, Jaspers, Marcel, and Sartre, and is opposed to philosophical rationalism and empiricism.

---

existentialism British  

/ ˌɛɡzɪˈstɛnʃəˌlɪzəm /

noun

1. a modern philosophical movement stressing the importance of personal experience and responsibility and the demands that they make on the individual, who is seen as a free agent in a deterministic and seemingly meaningless universe

---

existentialism Cultural  

1. A movement in twentieth-century literature and philosophy, with some forerunners in earlier centuries. Existentialism stresses that people are entirely free and therefore responsible for what they make of themselves. With this responsibility comes a profound anguish or dread. Søren Kierkegaard and Feodor Dostoyevsky in the nineteenth century, and Jean-Paul Sartre, Martin Heidegger, and Albert Camus in the twentieth century, were existentialist writers.

---

Other Word Forms

• existentialist
  adjective
• existentialistic
  adjective
• existentialistically
  adverb
• nonexistentialism
  noun

Etymology

Origin of existentialism

First recorded in 1940–45; from German Existentialismus (1919); see existential, -ism

Explanation

If you study philosophy, you learn about existentialism, a school of thought that claims people are responsible for creating meaning out of life — since the world is meaningless. In a nutshell, existentialism, pronounced "eg-sih-STEN-shul-ism," asks what it means to be human when individuals have the power to shape their lives without being absolutely sure of what is good and what is evil. Kierkegaard and Nietzsche are usually regarded as the founders of existentialism, but other famous existentialists include Heidegger, Sartre, Camus, and de Beauvoir.

Example Sentences

For those who don’t necessarily care about Camus but seek an introductory look at how Existentialism came to be one of the 20th century’s trendiest outlooks, “The Stranger” is equally commendable.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026

Fanon’s thinking syncretizes intellectual movements of the time — from Negritude to Existentialism, as well as thoughts on clinical psychology and colonialism — giving them voice in a dramatic style: soaring, sermon-like, poetic.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 22, 2024

Existentialism is grounded in the belief in human freedom.

From Textbooks • Jun. 15, 2022

He starts writing a book called Beyond Existentialism, which eventually turns into Trip.

From Scientific American • Sep. 30, 2018

See also Existentialism; Phenomenology Plato, 6, 37, 45, 67, 104 Plutarch, 101 Popper, Karl, 39, 104 Practice, see Humanistic nursing practice theory Presence, 3, 5, 6, 13, 15, 16, 27-29, 47, 56, 58, 72, 106.

From Humanistic Nursing by Paterson, Josephine G.