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Philosophy vocabulary · Metaphysics

Existence

Meaning in philosophy, with examples

/ɪɡˈzɪstəns/nounCore term

In philosophy, existence means: The fact or state of being real or being there at all, as opposed to not being; in existentialism, also the concrete life of a human being.

In Turkish: varlık, var olma, varoluş

How it is used

Used in metaphysics (the existence of numbers, the existence of the external world) and philosophy of religion (arguments for the existence of God). Typical verbs: prove, deny or doubt the existence of something.

Example sentences

  1. In the Sixth Meditation, Descartes argues for the existence of material things.

  2. For Sartre, existence comes before essence.

Common collocations

  • the existence of God
  • prove the existence of
  • human existence
  • existence precedes essence
  • ontologyThe part of metaphysics that studies what exists and what basic kinds of things there are, such as objects, properties, events or numbers.
  • essenceThe set of properties that make a thing what it is, without which it would not be that kind of thing at all.
  • existentialismA philosophical movement centered on individual existence, freedom and choice, holding that people create meaning through how they live rather than finding it ready-made.
  • metaphysicsThe branch of philosophy that studies the basic nature of reality: what exists, what things are, and ideas such as time, cause, identity and possibility.

More terms: Metaphysics

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