existents

Existents is a term used in philosophy to denote entities that have actual existence. It appears primarily in discussions of ontology, metaphysics, and the philosophy of language, where it functions to distinguish what there is in the world from things that are merely hypothetical, fictional, or non-existent. The scope of what counts as an existent varies with philosophical framework. In many systems, existents include concrete objects such as persons, animals, and chairs, as well as events and processes. In other frameworks, abstract objects like numbers, sets, or propositions may also be regarded as existents, while some schools deny existence to abstractions altogether and treat them as useful fictions, abstractions, or linguistic constructs.

In logic, existence is a formal notion expressed by existential quantification. A statement such as “There exists an x such that P(x)” asserts that some existent with property P(x) renders the claim true. Ontological discussions of existents often address questions about ontological commitment—the entities a theory presupposes as existing in order to render its claims meaningful.

The term also helps to distinguish debates about what exists from debates about the nature or essence of existing things. Classic issues include the status of universals, the nature of abstract objects, and the relationship between existence and essence. Different traditions diverge on whether existence is a basic property of substances, a relation to be understood through necessity, or a primitive stance in language and thought.

See also: Ontology, Existence, Abstract object, Realism, Nominalism.