Existing

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ɪɡˈzɪstɪŋ/

Definitions

1. Currently living or present in a place or situation ; being real or occurring at this time
2. Actually alive or present ; having reality or happening now
3. Presently existing or alive ; true and happening in the present moment

Etymology: The adjective "existing" is simply the present participle of "exist," so its history is the history of that verb. The verb came into English from French "exister," which descended from Latin "existere" (also written "exsistere"), meaning "to appear" or "to arise" as well as "to be." Latin built it from "ex," "out," and "sistere," "to set or place," so the original picture is of something standing forth or emerging into view. That sense of stepping out into being is still present when we say something is "existing" in the sense of being actually real right now. The same Latin root, "stare," meaning "to stand," lies behind a whole family of English verbs that share the "-sist" ending, such as "assist," "consist," "insist," "persist," and "resist." Each keeps the idea of standing firm or placing oneself somewhere, and "exist" belongs to that group as the one that stands out into the world.

Synonyms: living, being, surviving, functioning, operating

Antonyms: nonexistent, dead, extinct, absent, vanished