definitions

exist

[ ig-zist ]
/ ɪgˈzɪst /
||
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR exist ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object)

to have actual being; be: The world exists, whether you like it or not.
to have life or animation; live.
to continue to be or live: Belief in magic still exists.
to have being in a specified place or under certain conditions; be found; occur: Hunger exists in many parts of the world.
to achieve the basic needs of existence, as food and shelter: He's not living, he's merely existing.

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RELATED WORDS

current, extant, actual, alive, real

Nearby words

exilarch, exile, exilic, eximious, exine, exist, existence, existence theorem, existent, existential, existential psychology

Origin of exist

1595–1605; < Latin ex(s)istere to exist, appear, emerge, equivalent to ex- ex-1 + sistere to stand

Related forms

ex·ist·er, nounnon·ex·ist·ing, adjectiveun·ex·ist·ing, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for existing

British Dictionary definitions for existing

exist

/ (ɪɡˈzɪst) /

verb (intr)

to have being or reality; to be
to eke out a living; stay alive; surviveI can barely exist on this wage
to be living; live
to be present under specified conditions or in a specified placesharks exist in the Pacific
philosophy
  1. to be actual rather than merely possible
  2. to be a member of the domain of some theory, an element of some possible world, etc
  3. to have contingent being while free, responsible, and aware of one's situation

Derived Forms

existing, adjective

Word Origin for exist

C17: from Latin exsistere to step forth, from ex- 1 + sistere to stand
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012