substance

[ suhb-stuhns ]

/ ˈsʌb stəns /

|||

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR substance ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

that of which a thing consists; physical matter or material: form and substance.

a species of matter of definite chemical composition: a chalky substance.

controlled substance.

the subject matter of thought, discourse, study, etc.

the actual matter of a thing, as opposed to the appearance or shadow; reality.

substantial or solid character or quality: claims lacking in substance.

consistency; body: soup without much substance.

the meaning or gist, as of speech or writing.

something that has separate or independent existence.

Philosophy.

something that exists by itself and in which accidents or attributes inhere; that which receives modifications and is not itself a mode; something that is causally active; something that is more than an event.
the essential part of a thing; essence.
a thing considered as a continuing whole.

possessions, means, or wealth: to squander one's substance.

Linguistics. the articulatory or acoustic reality or the perceptual manifestation of a word or other construction (distinguished from form).

a standard of weights for paper.

Nearby words

subspecific, subspinale, subspontaneous, subst., substage, substance, substance abuse, substance abuse disorder, substance p, substandard, substantia

Idioms

in substance,

concerning the essentials; substantially.
actually; really: That is in substance how it appeared to me.

Origin of substance

1250–1300; Middle English < Latin substantia substance, essence (literally, that which stands under, i.e., underlies), equivalent to sub- sub- + -stant- (stem of stāns, present participle of stāre to stand) + -ia -ia (see -ance)

SYNONYMS FOR substance

4 theme, subject.

4, 5, 8 essence.

8 significance, import, pith.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR substance ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

sub·stance·less, adjective

Synonym study

1. See matter.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for substance

Scalise spoke briefly, adding little of substance, saying that the people back home know him best.
The Price of Steve Scalise’s Silence|Jason Berry|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Those with a slightly sleazier bent have dredged up reports of his weight gain, substance abuse, and arrest.
D’Angelo’s ‘Black Messiah’ Was Worth Waiting 15 Years For|James Joiner|December 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Things got even more serious when Cosby moved on to the subject of substance abuse and children.
When Bill Cosby N-Bombed the Congressional Black Caucus|Asawin Suebsaeng|December 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Substance abuse was already an issue Cosby had grown particularly passionate about.
When Bill Cosby N-Bombed the Congressional Black Caucus|Asawin Suebsaeng|December 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST

True, a solid majority backs the Democratic position on the substance.
Staving Off a Democratic Civil War|Michael Tomasky|December 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The acetylene prepared from this substance has a very characteristic odor due to impurities, the chief of these being phosphine.
An Elementary Study of Chemistry|William McPherson
The law of substance condemns all restrictions, hates all fetters, and considers exclusiveness a crime against its divinity.
Woman and Socialism|August Bebel
We know that just in proportion to the loss of this substance are our vigor and strength taken from us.
The American Reformed Cattle Doctor|George Dadd
Not content with that great injury, you must also deprive me of my substance.
A Life's Secret|Mrs. Henry Wood
The specific gravity of water is taken as unity, and that of any other substance is expressed as a decimal.
The Library of Work and Play: Mechanics, Indoors and Out|Fred T. Hodgson

British Dictionary definitions for substance

substance

/ (ˈsʌbstəns) /

noun

the tangible matter of which a thing consists

a specific type of matter, esp a homogeneous material with a definite composition

the essence, meaning, etc, of a written or spoken thought

solid or meaningful quality

material densitya vacuum has no substance

material possessions or wealtha man of substance

philosophy

the supposed immaterial substratum that can receive modifications and in which attributes and accidents inhere
a thing considered as a continuing whole that survives the changeability of its properties

Christian Science that which is eternal

a euphemistic term for any illegal drug

in substance with regard to the salient points

Derived Forms

substanceless, adjective

Word Origin for substance

C13: via Old French from Latin substantia, from substāre, from sub- + stāre 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

Medicine definitions for substance

substance

[ sŭb′stəns ]

n.

That which has mass and occupies space; matter.

A material of a particular kind or constitution.

Idioms and Phrases with substance

substance

see in substance; sum and substance.

substance

noun

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RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Idioms

Origin of substance

SYNONYMS FOR substance

Related forms

Synonym study

Examples from the Web for substance

British Dictionary definitions for substance

substance

noun

Derived Forms

Word Origin for substance

Medicine definitions for substance

substance

n.

Idioms and Phrases with substance

substance