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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

present.

Relating to now, for the time being; current.

7 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

adj/ˈpɹɛz.ənt/Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/ˈpɹez.ənt/Australia, New-Zealand
  1. Relating to now, for the time being; current.

    The barbaric practice continues to the present day.
    The present manager has been here longer than the last one.
  2. Located in the immediate vicinity.

    Only half of all present members were present at the meeting.
    Is there a doctor present?
  3. Having an immediate effect (of a medicine, poison etc.); fast-acting.

    obsolete
  4. Not delayed; immediate; instant.

    obsolete
  5. Ready; quick in emergency.

    dated
    a present wit
  6. Favorably attentive; propitious.

    obsolete
  7. Relating to something a person is referring to in the very context, with a deictic use similar to the demonstrative adjective this.

    in the present study; the present article; the present results
  8. Attentive; alert; focused.

    Sorry, I was distracted just now, I'll try to be more present from now on.
  9. Neither for or against (used in voting to express abstention)

Where this word comes from

From Middle English present, from Old French present, from Latin praesent-, praesens, present participle of praeesse (“to be present”), from Latin prae- (“pre-”) + esse (“to be”). Displaced Old English andweard (“present, current”).

noun/ˈpɹɛz.ənt/Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/ˈpɹez.ənt/Australia, New-Zealand
  1. The current moment or period of time.

  2. The present tense.

Where this word comes from

From Middle English present, from Old French present, from Latin praesent-, praesens, present participle of praeesse (“to be present”), from Latin prae- (“pre-”) + esse (“to be”). Displaced Old English andweard (“present, current”).

noun/ˈpɹɛz.ənt/Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/ˈpɹez.ənt/Australia, New-Zealand
  1. A gift, especially one given for birthdays, Christmas, anniversaries, graduations, weddings, or any other special occasions.

    wedding present
    birthday present
  2. The position of a soldier in presenting arms.

    The platoon stands at present.
    He was at present near the headquarters gates.
  3. Poo; feces.

    colloquial · endearing · euphemistic
    I think our toddler's just left us a little present in his diaper...
    She has to deal with her cats' presents in the litterboxes on a daily basis, and she doesn't mind one bit.
Where this word comes from

From Middle English presenten, from Old French presenter, from Latin praesentāre (“to show”), from praesent-, praesens, present participle of praeesse (“be in front of”).

verb/pɹɪˈzɛnt/Received-Pronunciation/pɹɪˈzɛnt/General-American/pɹiˈzɛnt/US/pɹɪˈzɛnt/Canada
  1. To bring (someone) into the presence of (a person); to introduce formally.

    to present an envoy to the king
  2. To appear or represent oneself outwardly.

    intransitive
    With your shabby attire, you do not present well as a prospective investment banking associate!
  3. To nominate (a member of the clergy) for an ecclesiastical benefice; to offer to the bishop or ordinary as a candidate for institution.

    transitive
  4. To offer (a problem, complaint) to a court or other authority for consideration.

    transitive
  5. To charge (a person) with a crime or accusation; to bring before court.

    archaic · transitive
  6. To come forward, appear in a particular place or before a particular person, especially formally.

    reflexive
  7. To put (something) forward in order for it to be seen; to show, exhibit.

    transitive
  8. To make clear to one's mind or intelligence; to put forward for consideration.

    transitive
  9. To put on, stage (a play etc.).

    transitive
    The theater is proud to present the Fearless Fliers.
  10. To point (a firearm) at something, to hold (a weapon) in a position ready to fire.

    transitive
  11. To offer oneself for mental consideration; to occur to the mind.

    reflexive
    Well, one idea does present itself.
  12. To come to the attention of medical staff, especially with a specific symptom.

    intransitive
    The patient presented with insomnia.
    Symptoms typically present in early childhood.
  13. To appear (in a specific way) for delivery (of a fetus); to appear first at the mouth of the uterus during childbirth.

    intransitive
  14. To appear or represent oneself (as having a certain gender).

    intransitive
    At that time, Elbe was presenting as a man.
  15. To act as presenter on (a radio, television programme etc.).

    transitive
    Anne Robinson presents "The Weakest Link".
  16. To give a gift or presentation to (someone).

    transitive
    She was presented with an honorary degree for her services to entertainment.
  17. To deliver (something abstract) as though as a gift; to offer.

    transitive
    I presented my compliments to Lady Featherstoneshaw.
  18. To hand over (a bill etc.) to be paid.

    transitive
  19. To display one's female genitalia in a way that signals to others that one is ready for copulation. Also referred to as lordosis behaviour.

    intransitive
  20. In omegaverse fiction, to have one's secondary sex (alpha, omega, or beta) become apparent, typically at puberty.

    slang
Where this word comes from

From Middle English presenten, from Old French presenter, from Latin praesentāre (“to show”), from praesent-, praesens, present participle of praeesse (“be in front of”).

verb/pɹɪˈzɛnt/Received-Pronunciation/pɹɪˈzɛnt/General-American/pɹiˈzɛnt/US/pɹɪˈzɛnt/Canada
  1. simple past and past participle of presend

    form-of · participle · past
Where this word comes from

From presend + -t.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.