Essence vs. Element

Essence vs. Element — Is There a Difference?
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Difference Between Essence and Element

Essencenoun

The inherent nature of a thing or idea.

Elementnoun

One of the simplest or essential parts or principles of which anything consists, or upon which the constitution or fundamental powers of anything are based.

Letters are the elements of written language.

Essencenoun

(philosophy) The true nature of anything, not accidental or illusory.

Elementnoun

(chemistry) Any one of the simplest chemical substances that cannot be decomposed in a chemical reaction or by any chemical means and made up of atoms all having the same number of protons.

Essencenoun

Constituent substance.

Elementnoun

One of the four basic building blocks of matter in theories of ancient philosophers and alchemists: water, earth, fire, and air.

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Essencenoun

A being; especially, a purely spiritual being.

Elementnoun

(legal) A required aspect or component of a cause of action. A deed is regarded as a violation of law only if each element can be proved.

Essencenoun

A significant feature of something.

Elementnoun

(set theory) One of the objects in a set.

Essencenoun

The concentrated form of a plant or drug obtained through a distillation process.

essence of Jojoba

Elementnoun

Any of the teeth of a zip fastener.

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Essencenoun

An extract or concentrate obtained from a plant or other matter used for flavouring.

vanilla essence

Elementnoun

A small part of the whole.

an element of doubt;an element of the picture

Essencenoun

Fragrance, a perfume.

Elementnoun

Atmospheric forces such as strong winds and rains.

exposed to the elements

Essencenoun

the choicest or most essential or most vital part of some idea or experience;

the gist of the prosecutor's argumentthe heart and soul of the Republican Partythe nub of the story

Elementnoun

A place or state of being that an individual or object is best suited to.

to be in one's element

Essencenoun

any substance possessing to a high degree the predominant properties of a plant or drug or other natural product from which it is extracted

Elementnoun

The bread and wine taken at Holy Communion.

Essencenoun

the central meaning or theme of a speech or literary work

Elementnoun

A group of people within a larger group having a particular common characteristic.

You sometimes find the hooligan element at football matches.

Essencenoun

a toiletry that emits and diffuses a fragrant odor

Elementnoun

A component in electrical equipment, often in the form of a coil, having a high resistance, thereby generating heat when a current is passed through it.

The element in this electric kettle can heat the water in under a minute.

Elementnoun

(computing) One of the conceptual objects in a markup language, usually represented in text by tags.

Elementverb

(obsolete) To compound of elements.

Elementverb

(obsolete) To constitute and be the elements of.

Elementnoun

an abstract part of something;

jealousy was a component of his charactertwo constituents of a musical composition are melody and harmonythe grammatical elements of a sentencea key factor in her successhumor: an effective ingredient of a speech

Elementnoun

any of the more than 100 known substances (of which 92 occur naturally) that cannot be separated into simpler substances and that singly or in combination constitute all matter

Elementnoun

an artifact that is one of the individual parts of which a composite entity is made up; especially a part that can be separated from or attached to a system;

spare components for carsa component or constituent element of a system

Elementnoun

one of four substances thought in ancient and medieval cosmology to constitute the physical universe;

the alchemists believed that there were four elements

Elementnoun

the most favorable environment for a plant or animal;

water is the element of fishes

Elementnoun

the situation in which you are happiest and most effective;

in your element

Elementnoun

a straight line that generates a cylinder or cone