essence

essence
essence late 14c., essencia (respelled late 15c. on French model), from L. essentia "being, essence," abstract noun formed in imitation of Gk. ousia "being, essence" (from on, gen. ontos, prp. of einai "to be"), from essent-, prp. stem of esse "to be," from PIE *es- (Cf. Skt. asmi, Hittite eimi, O.C.S. jesmi, Lith. esmi, Goth. imi, O.E. eom "I am;" see BE (Cf. be)). Originally "substance of the Trinity," the general sense of "basic element of anything" is first recorded in English 1650s, though this is the base meaning of the first English use of ESSENTIAL (Cf. essential).

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?
Synonyms:

Look at other dictionaries:

  • essence — [ esɑ̃s ] n. f. • 1130; lat. philos. essentia I ♦ Philos. Ce qui constitue la nature d un être. 1 ♦ Philos. (opposé à accident) Fond de l être, nature intime des choses. ⇒ nature, substance. L essence des choses. L essence humaine. « Nous ne… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Essence — Es sence, n. [F. essence, L. essentia, formed as if fr. a p. pr. of esse to be. See {Is}, and cf. {Entity}.] 1. The constituent elementary notions which constitute a complex notion, and must be enumerated to define it; sometimes called the… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • essence — es·sence / es əns/ n 1: the real or ultimate nature of a thing: the properties that make a thing what it is his award is legitimate only so long as it draws its essence from the collective bargaining agreement United Steel Workers v. Enterprise… …   Law dictionary

  • essence — Essence. s. f. v. Ce par quoy la chose est ce qu elle est, ce qui constituë la chose. L essence divine. l essence des choses. l essence de l homme est d estre animal raisonnable. ces paroles sont de l essence du sacrement. Essence, signifie parmi …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie française

  • essence — ► NOUN 1) the intrinsic nature of something; the quality which determines something s character. 2) an extract or concentrate obtained from a plant or other substance and used for flavouring or scent. ● in essence Cf. ↑in essence ● of the essence …   English terms dictionary

  • essence — [es′əns] n. [ME < OFr & L essentia < esse, to be: for IE base see IS1] 1. something that is, or exists; entity 2. that which makes something what it is; intrinsic, fundamental nature or most important quality (of something); essential being …   English World dictionary

  • essence — [n1] heart, significance aspect, attribute, backbone, base, basis, be all and endall*, being, bottom, bottom line*, burden, caliber, character, chief constituent, constitution, core, crux, element, entity, essentia, essentiality, fiber, form,… …   New thesaurus

  • Essence — Es sence, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Essenced}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Essencing}.] To perfume; to scent. Essenced fops. Addison. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Essence — (fr., spr. Essangs), so v.w. Essenz, s.d.; z.B. E. de Mirhane, s.u. Bittermandelöl. E. d Orient (spr. Essangs d Oriang), ein in Chalons fur Saȏne fabricirter Perlenglanz zu Glasperlen …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Essence — (franz., spr. āngß ), Essenz (s.d.); E. d Orient, E. de perles, soviel wie Perlenessenz; E. de Mirbane, s. Nitrobenzol …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”