entity

/ˈɛntədi/

/ˈɛntɪti/

Other forms: entities

If your little sister turns her lemonade stand into a lemonade empire, she might incorporate it as a company. Under the law, it would be considered an entity, or a separate being for purposes of government control.

The word entity originally meant "being, existence," and was borrowed from Medieval Latin entitas, from Latin ens, irregular form of esse "to be, exist." The suffix –ity means "quality or state." Medieval Christian philosophers, influenced by the Church Fathers and Aristotle, discussed the concept of ens "abstract being" versus esse "actual being."

Definitions of entity

1. noun

   that which is perceived or known or inferred to have its own distinct existence (living or nonliving)
   types:

   physical entity

   an entity that has physical existence

   abstract entity, abstraction

   a general concept formed by extracting common features from specific examples

   thing

   an entity that is not named specifically

   thing

   a separate and self-contained entity

   object, physical object

   a tangible and visible entity; an entity that can cast a shadow

   causal agency, causal agent, cause

   any entity that produces an effect or is responsible for events or results

   matter

   that which has mass and occupies space

   psychological feature

   a feature of the mental life of a living organism

   attribute

   an abstraction belonging to or characteristic of an entity

   physical process, process

   a sustained phenomenon or one marked by gradual changes through a series of states

   group, grouping

   any number of entities (members) considered as a unit

   relation

   an abstraction belonging to or characteristic of two entities or parts together

   communication

   something that is communicated by or to or between people or groups

   amount, measure, quantity

   how much there is or how many there are of something that you can quantify

   change

   a thing that is different

   freshener

   anything that freshens

   anathema, horror

   something that inspires dislike; something horrible

   crackerjack, doozy, jimdandy, jimhickey

   someone or something excellent of its kind

   pacifier

   anything that serves to pacify

   security blanket

   anything that an adult person uses to reduce anxiety

   stinker

   anything that gives off an offensive odor (especially a cheap cigar)

   whacker, whopper

   something especially big or impressive of its kind

   otherworld

   an abstract spiritual world beyond earthly reality

   set

   (mathematics) an abstract collection of numbers or symbols

   substance

   material of a particular kind or constitution

   source

   a place or thing from which something is obtained or derived