in essence

in essence — 慣用語

1. used to describe the most important or fundamental quality of a situation, idea,

1.慣用語B2
釋義

本質上

指最重要、根本的特性

used to describe the most important or fundamental quality of a situation, idea, or thing, setting aside small or surface details.

例句

The two plans are, in essence, the same proposal with slightly different budgets.

這兩個計劃本質上是相同的提案，只是預算略有不同。

parenthetical phrase: , in essence, between subject and verb

Elena said the project is, in essence, about helping young people develop job skills.

Elena 說這個計畫本質上是在幫助年輕人培養工作技能。

常見搭配
  • in essence, it is
  • is, in essence, about
  • are, in essence, the same
  • remains, in essence,
同義詞
  • basically

    more informal and common in everyday conversation

  • fundamentally

    slightly more formal, emphasises the underlying foundation

  • at bottom

    idiomatic and slightly old-fashioned; less common

  • essentially

    the most direct synonym; avoid using together with 'in essence'

反義詞
  • superficially

    focuses on surface appearance rather than deep nature

  • on the surface

    idiomatic opposite; describes how things appear rather than how they really are

文法句型

in essence, [clause]

[subject] is, in essence, [complement]

用法筆記

Often placed between commas in the middle of a sentence, or at the start followed by a comma. The phrase signals that the speaker is moving past surface-level details to the core point.

常見錯誤

In essence, the two options are the essentially the same.
In essence, the two options are the same.
Do not use 'essentially' together with 'in essence'; they mean the same thing and using both is redundant.
In essence of the problem is money.
In essence, the problem is about money.
'In essence' is an adverbial phrase, not a prepositional phrase. Do not follow it with 'of'.