exist
Americanverb (used without object)
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to have actual being; be.
The world exists, whether you like it or not.
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to have life or animation; live.
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to continue to be or live.
Belief in magic still exists.
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to have being in a specified place or under certain conditions; be found; occur.
Hunger exists in many parts of the world.
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to achieve the basic needs of existence, as food and shelter.
He's not living, he's merely existing.
verb
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to have being or reality; to be
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to eke out a living; stay alive; survive
I can barely exist on this wage
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to be living; live
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to be present under specified conditions or in a specified place
sharks exist in the Pacific
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philosophy
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to be actual rather than merely possible
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to be a member of the domain of some theory, an element of some possible world, etc
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to have contingent being while free, responsible, and aware of one's situation
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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existsimple
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existssimple
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have existedperfect
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has existedperfect
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am existingprogressive
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are existingprogressive
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is existingprogressive
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have been existingperfect progressive
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has been existingperfect progressive
Past
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existedsimple
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had existedperfect
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was existingprogressive
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were existingprogressive
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had been existingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of exist
First recorded in 1595–1605; from Latin ex(s)istere “to exist, appear, emerge,” equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + sistere “to stand”
Explanation
The verb exist means to live, to have reality. Dodos no longer exist because they were hunted to extinction. It's not only "live" things that exist. The government exists, as does your fear of heights. Anything that can be acknowledged in the present, exists. Another meaning for the verb exist is to support oneself or survive. If someone doesn't have a job, they may have to exist on unemployment benefits until they find one.
Vocabulary lists containing exist
Because of Winn-Dixie
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Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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"Inventing to Solve a Problem"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
As for the others who crossed, he said, "everyone wants to move up, wants a good future -- something that doesn't exist in Morocco".
From Barron's ● Aug. 1, 2026
Neither the operation or the AI tool currently exist in a way that could make Meta money, and Zuckerberg gave no timeline for when they would materialise.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
The days of a FEBA–Forward Edge Battle Area–no longer exist.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
Actors and musicians learn to exist and create out of tension without rushing to resolve it.
From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2026
Owen gives me this look like he just remembered I exist.
From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz
The central finding is not only that extreme supersaturation exists.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 1, 2026
Every species that exists today emerged during the past one million years.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 30, 2026
Once an agency receives a request, it must respond within 10 days, saying whether the information exists and can be released.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
The singer accused the hackers of violating the "sacred relationship that exists between her and her fans" and is suing for invasion of privacy, violation of California computer hacking laws, and conversion.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
I was wrong to attempt to deceive you; but I feared a stubbornness that exists in your character.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
One leading idea is that evolution reused biological systems that already existed.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 1, 2026
Previously, roughly a dozen parking spots existed on his block.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
I’m referring to the tendency that existed for much of the 20th century for smaller stocks to outperform the largest ones.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 30, 2026
The group had to put "more than 50,000" different parts back into production and "select new suppliers because the previous suppliers no longer existed," Cote said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
“Okay. How about this question, then—the hazmats really want us to find a fossil because they want to prove that life once existed on Mars, correct?”
From "A Rover's Story" by Jasmine Warga
Ali Esfahani, CFO of Unconventional AI and a veteran technology investment banker, believes software companies will need to completely overhaul existing seat-based pricing.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026
By challenging a long-standing assumption about moisture, the researchers found a straightforward way to improve an existing battery material.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 1, 2026
One plan being considered by LA28 organizers would eschew the existing locker rooms in favor of temporary modular structures, the sources said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 1, 2026
And it would work with partners to "propose a new way of distributing resources through the existing Fifa Forward programme"
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
It had not merely become silent; it had stopped existing, scared into its grave by his knock.
From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
