Meaning of presence in English

Table of contents

Noun
presence
Etymology
Middle English: via Old French from Latin praesentia‘being at hand’, from the verb praeesse (see present)
Definitions
1. the state of being present
Examples
- « current existence »
- « he tested for the presence of radon »
Antonyms
- absence
2. the immediate proximity of someone or something
Examples
- « she blushed in his presence »
- « he sensed the presence of danger »
- « he was well behaved in front of company »
3. an invisible spiritual being felt to be nearby
4. the impression that something is present
Examples
- « he felt the presence of an evil force »
5. dignified manner or conduct
Derived terms
6. the act of being present
Antonyms
- absence

Famous quotes

« The earth we abuse and the living things we kill will, in the end, take their revenge for in exploiting their presence we are diminishing our future. »
Marya Mannes
« It is difficult to imagine how any behavior in the presence of another person can avoid being a communication of one's own view of the nature of one's relationship with that person and how it can fail to influence that person. »
Paul Watzlawick
« Wisdom I know is social. She seeks her fellows. But Beauty is jealous, and illy bears the presence of a rival. »
Thomas Jefferson
« Peace is not the absence of conflict but the presence of creative alternatives for responding to conflict - alternatives to passive or aggressive responses, alternatives to violence. »
Dorothy Thompson
« I think the success of democracy is not really police security it's the presence of a broad middle class. The stronger the middle class of a people is, the less you have to worry about one group coming in and exploiting the democratic process for its own ends. »
King Abdullah II