sine qua non
an indispensable condition, element, or factor; something essential: Her presence was the sine qua non of every social event.
Origin of sine qua non
1Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use sine qua non in a sentence
That accumulation of identities is already a sine qua non when speaking of Hispanics, like Zimmerman.
George Zimmerman, Hispanics, and the Messy Nature of American Identity | Ilan Stavans | April 6, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTIn the land of the industrial revolution, foreign ownership and management is the sine qua non of industrial success.
This unsmoked, wet-cured ham is the sine qua non of Parisian butcher shops: a light, ephemeral meat, sweet but umami.
It teaches you to take your time, or as the Germans call it, it gives you "Ruhe (repose)," the grand sine qua non!
Music-Study in Germany | Amy FayThe Plumb Plan has not yet been made the sine qua non of the American labor program.
A History of Trade Unionism in the United States | Selig Perlman
I admit that slavery is at the root of the rebellion, or at least its sine qua non.
Speeches and Letters of Abraham Lincoln, 1832-1865 | Abraham LincolnThis self-deception is a necessary step in crowd-formation and is a sine qua non of becoming a crowd.
The Behavior of Crowds | Everett Dean MartinAmple light and air are a sine qua non; concealment appears to be a matter of no importance.
A Bird Calendar for Northern India | Douglas Dewar
British Dictionary definitions for sine qua non
/ Latin (ˈsaɪnɪ kweɪ ˈnɒn) /
an essential condition or requirement
Origin of sine qua non
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cultural definitions for sine qua non
[ (sin-i kwah non, nohn) ]
The essential, crucial, or indispensable ingredient without which something would be impossible: “Her leadership was the sine qua non of the organization's success.” From Latin, meaning “without which nothing.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Other Idioms and Phrases with sine qua non
An essential element or condition, as in A perfect cake is the since qua non of a birthday party. This phrase is Latin for “without which not” and has been used in English since about 1600. It appears more in writing than in speech.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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