Advertisement - Continue reading below

Definition of "substance" []

  • That which has mass and occupies space; matter. (noun)
  • A material of a particular kind or constitution. (noun)
  • Essential nature; essence. (noun)
  • Gist; heart. (noun)
  • That which is solid and practical in character, quality, or importance: a plan without substance. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "substance" in a sentence
  • "Between cells there is a greater or less amount of a homogeneous substance -- the _intercellular substance_."
  • "_, (1) That the Deity created the substance of these shapes and forms from _Nothing_; or else (2) that he created them out of _his own substance_ -- out of Himself, in fact."
  • "It frequently happens that the contortions or displacements due to motion are seen to affect a single line belonging to a particular substance, while the other lines of _that same substance_ remain imperturbable."