existential

IPA/ˌeɡzɪˈstenʃl/
KK[ˌɛɡzˌɪstˈɛnʃəl]IPA/ˌeɡzɪˈstenʃl/

existential — adjective

  • existentialpositive
  • more existentialcomparative
  • most existentialsuperlative

1. connected with the fact of existing, staying alive, or facing the deepest condit

1.adjectiveC1
Definition

connected with the fact of existing, staying alive, or facing the deepest conditions of human life and meaning.

Example

Rising seas pose an existential threat to Tuvalu and other low islands.

collocation: existential threat

After losing his job, Emre faced an existential crisis about purpose and identity.

collocation: existential crisis

Common collocations
  • existential threat
  • existential crisis
  • existential question
  • existential concern
  • existential dread
Synonyms
  • life-and-death

    narrower and more dramatic; mainly about immediate physical survival

  • fundamental

    broader; means basic or central, without necessarily implying existence itself

  • ontological

    more technical and philosophical; focuses on the nature of being

Grammar Patterns

existential threat / crisis / question

pose an existential threat to + noun

Usage Note

Usually appears before nouns such as 'threat', 'crisis', 'question', or 'concern'. This sense can refer either to literal survival or to the deepest issues of human life. Distinguish from sense 1, which belongs to existentialist philosophy, and from sense 3, which stresses lived experience rather than existence in general.

Common Mistakes

The delayed bus created an existential problem for me.
The delayed bus created a practical problem for me.
use 'existential' for survival or meaning-of-life issues, not small everyday inconvenience.

2. relating to the philosophy that says people are free to choose their actions and

2.adjectiveC2
Definition

relating to the philosophy that says people are free to choose their actions and must create meaning for themselves.

Example

The seminar compared existential writers with religious thinkers from the same period.

existential + writers / ideas / themes

Nikos gave an existential reading of the play, focusing on freedom and choice.

an existential reading of + text

Common collocations
  • existential philosophy
  • existential writer
  • existential theme
  • existential reading
  • existential thought
Synonyms
  • existentialist

    closer to the named movement and its followers

  • philosophical

    broader; can refer to any branch of philosophy, not only existentialism

  • metaphysical

    narrower in a different way; often focuses on being and reality rather than choice and freedom

Grammar Patterns

existential + noun

an existential reading of + noun

Usage Note

Most often modifies nouns such as 'philosophy', 'writer', 'theme', 'reading', or 'question' in literary and academic contexts. Distinguish from sense 2, which is about existence or survival more generally rather than the school of philosophy itself.

Common Mistakes

She studies the existential at university.
She studies existential philosophy at university.
'existential' is an adjective and needs a noun in this meaning.

3. rooted in the direct experience of being alive, felt as a real human reality rat

3.adjectiveC2
Definition

rooted in the direct experience of being alive, felt as a real human reality rather than as a theory alone.

Example

After months in camp, safety was no longer an idea but an existential reality.

collocation: existential reality

The poet writes about grief with existential honesty that comes from lived pain.

existential honesty grounded in experience

Common collocations
  • existential reality
  • existential truth
  • existential experience
  • existential honesty
Synonyms
  • experiential

    more general; based on direct experience

  • empirical

    stresses observation and evidence, often in research settings

  • lived

    plain-language word often used before 'experience' or 'reality'

Antonyms
  • theoretical

    based on ideas rather than direct experience

  • abstract

    removed from immediate human experience

Grammar Patterns

existential reality / truth / experience

grounded in existential experience

Usage Note

Mainly found in formal literary, philosophical, and psychological writing. It usually modifies abstract nouns such as 'reality', 'truth', 'experience', or 'honesty'. Distinguish from sense 2: this sense stresses what is personally lived and felt, not existence in a broad or general way.

Common Mistakes

The report gives an existential model of trade.
The report gives a theoretical model of trade.
this sense is about lived human reality, not an abstract system or model.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/2

These words all touch serious matters, but they point in different directions. 'Existential' is used when something reaches existence itself, whether that means literal survival or the deepest question of what it means to live. 'Life-and-death' is narrower and more urgent: it focuses on immediate physical survival in war, illness, or disaster. 'Fundamental' means basic or central, but it does not itself suggest danger or human existence. 'Human' is broader and more neutral, covering anything related to people. 'Ontological' is the most technical and belongs mainly to philosophy, where it asks what it means to exist. A flood may be an existential threat to an island, while a budget rule is only a fundamental issue, not an existential one.

existential ↗life-and-deathfundamental ↗human ↗ontological ↗

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

The word was built in English from 'existence' and the adjective ending '-ial'. The deeper root goes back to Latin 'existere', meaning 'to come into being' or 'stand out'. At first, 'existential' simply meant 'relating to existence'. In modern usage it developed a strong link with existentialist philosophy, and it can also describe what is felt as part of a person's lived reality.

First known use

1656

1656, in the meaning defined at sense 1