essence
French, noun/e.sɑ̃s/
essence is spelled E-S-S-E-N-C-E (7 letters) and appears 32 times per million words in written French, the 2,569th most frequent French word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Essence is a French feminine noun meaning “essence” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) defines it as “Ce qui fait qu’une chose est ce qu’elle est, ce qui constitue la nature d’une chose”.
What does essence mean in English?
noun
- 1
feminineessence
- 2
femininepetrol, gasoline
- 3
feminineessence, essential oil
Source: English Wiktionary, French section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How French dictionaries define it
noun: 1. Ce qui fait qu’une chose est ce qu’elle est, ce qui constitue la nature d’une chose. 2. Espèce apte à produire du bois. 3. Espèce dominante d’une forêt. 4. Huile aromatique très subtile qu’on extrait de certaines substances.
The definition in the French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire), in French.
Source: French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire), dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of essence
- essences plural
Source: English Wiktionary and French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce essence?
- /e.sɑ̃s/
- /ɛ.sɑ̃s/
- \e.sɑ̃s\
Sources: English Wiktionary, French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to essence
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is essence in French?
essence appears 32 times per million words in written French.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).