You’ve probably heard it in a movie trailer or read it in a panicked news headline about climate change or AI. Someone mentions an existential threat, and suddenly everyone looks grave. But honestly, if you ask five people what existential actually means, you’re going to get five very different, very confused answers.
It’s one of those "smart" words. People toss it around to sound sophisticated, but usually, they just mean "really big" or "scary." That’s not quite it.
At its core, the word existential relates to existence itself—specifically the fact that you are here, breathing, and eventually, you won't be. It’s about the raw, unfiltered reality of being alive. But it’s also a massive branch of philosophy that changed how we think about freedom. It’s the difference between "I'm having a bad day" and "Why am I even having days at all?"
The Philosophy of "Existence Precedes Essence"
To understand what existential means, we have to look at Jean-Paul Sartre. He’s the guy often credited with making the term a household name in the mid-20th century. He had this famous tagline: "Existence precedes essence."
Think about a letter opener. Someone designed it with a specific purpose. Its "essence"—to open mail—existed in a designer’s mind before the physical object was ever made. But humans? According to Sartre and other thinkers like Simone de Beauvoir, we don't have a pre-set blueprint. We just show up. We exist first, and then we have to figure out what the hell we are.
This is where the weight of the word comes from. If there’s no cosmic manual telling you who to be, you’re 100% responsible for every choice you make. That’s a lot of pressure. It’s why existential is so often paired with the word "dread." It’s the dizzying feeling of standing on a cliffside and realizing you have the freedom to jump—or to walk away and grab a taco. The cliff doesn't care. Only you do.
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The Great Grandfather: Søren Kierkegaard
Long before the French coffee-shop intellectuals were smoking cigarettes and talking about the void, a Danish guy named Søren Kierkegaard was laying the groundwork. He didn't use the word existentialism exactly as we do now, but he was obsessed with the individual experience.
Kierkegaard was a religious man, but he was frustrated with how "boring" and "automatic" faith had become. He argued that being a person isn't about following a set of social rules. It’s about the "leap of faith." It's about the subjective "me" versus the objective "world." For him, existential meant the intense, personal struggle of trying to find meaning in a world that doesn't hand it out for free.
Why We Keep Talking About Existential Threats
If you look at the news today, the word existential usually shows up right before the word "threat."
When scientists talk about an existential threat to humanity—like nuclear war, a rogue super-intelligence, or catastrophic climate shifts—they aren't just saying it's a big problem. They mean it’s a problem that could end our "existence" as a species.
It's a scale thing.
- A flat tire is an annoyance.
- Losing your job is a crisis.
- A meteor heading for Earth is an existential threat.
But there’s a nuance here that gets missed. An existential crisis for a business isn't necessarily about the building burning down. It's about the company's reason for being. If a digital camera company realizes nobody wants cameras because everyone has a smartphone, they are facing an existential crisis. Their purpose is gone. They have to reinvent their "essence" or disappear.
The Existential Crisis: It’s Not Just for Teenagers
We’ve all been there. 3:00 AM. Staring at the ceiling.
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You start wondering if your job matters. You wonder if your relationships are real or just habits. This is the classic existential crisis. It’s a moment where the "autopilot" of life breaks.
Psychologist Viktor Frankl, who survived the Holocaust and wrote the legendary book Man’s Search for Meaning, argued that this search for meaning is actually the primary drive in humans. He didn't see the existential vacuum—that feeling of emptiness—as a mental illness. He saw it as a sign of being human. If you're questioning your existence, it means you're finally paying attention.
Albert Camus, another heavy hitter in this space, took a slightly different route. He talked about "The Absurd." To Camus, the human drive to find meaning and the silent, meaningless universe are constantly clashing. He used the myth of Sisyphus, the guy condemned to push a rock up a hill forever only for it to roll back down, as a metaphor for life.
His solution? Don't despair. Just accept the rock. Be happy despite the absurdity.
Common Misconceptions (What It Isn’t)
Existential is not a synonym for "deep."
You can have a deep conversation about the plot of a Marvel movie, but it’s probably not an existential conversation unless you’re discussing whether the characters have free will in a scripted universe.
It’s also not just a synonym for "scary."
High cholesterol is scary. It’s a health risk. But it only becomes an existential issue when it forces you to confront the reality of your mortality and change how you define yourself.
We also see it confused with "extinction." While an existential threat can lead to extinction, the word itself is more about the state of being. You can have an existential crisis while being perfectly safe and physically healthy. In fact, that's usually when they happen—when you finally have enough quiet time to realize you’re a ghost driving a meat-covered skeleton made of stardust.
Practical Ways to Handle "The Dread"
So, what do you do when the word existential starts feeling less like a vocabulary word and more like a heavy blanket?
First, realize that the "meaning of life" isn't something you find under a rock. It’s something you build. This is the empowering side of the philosophy. If there is no pre-written script, you can’t get the lines wrong.
- Radical Responsibility. Stop blaming "the way things are." If you are existential, you are the author. It sucks because you can't blame anyone else, but it’s great because you have the pen.
- Focus on Agency. When the world feels like it’s ending, focus on the choices you actually have. Sartre would say that even in a prison cell, you are free to choose your attitude toward the walls.
- Embrace the Absurd. Follow Camus’ lead. If the universe is a bit of a joke, you might as well enjoy the punchline. Do things that make you feel alive, even if they don't "matter" in a billion years.
- Define Your Essence. Since you weren't born with a purpose, you get to pick one. Maybe your purpose today is just being a really good friend or making a decent omelet. That counts.
How the Term Is Evolving in 2026
As we move deeper into the 2020s, the word existential is getting a workout.
We are seeing it used heavily in the context of Artificial Intelligence. When experts like Nick Bostrom or leaders at OpenAI talk about existential risk, they aren't just worried about AI taking jobs. They are worried about "alignment"—the idea that if an AI doesn't share our fundamental values, the human "essence" might be erased or replaced.
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It’s also becoming a political buzzword. Politicians use it to describe "existential threats to democracy." In this context, they mean the system itself might cease to function. The "existence" of the Republic is on the line.
Whether we are talking about the end of the world or just a really long night of soul-searching, the word existential always brings us back to the same spot: The Mirror.
It’s a word that demands you look at yourself and ask: I am here. Now what? ## Moving Forward With Clarity
The next time you see the word existential, don't just let it wash over you as a vague "scary" term. Check the context.
Is it talking about the survival of a group? Or is it talking about the internal struggle of an individual trying to make sense of a chaotic world?
If you're feeling your own existential weight, start by reading Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning. It’s short, it’s brutal, and it’s the best "how-to" guide for being a person in an uncertain world.
Stop looking for a sign from the universe. The fact that you’re looking for a sign is the sign. You exist. That’s the starting line. Now, go decide who you’re going to be.
Start small. Change one habit that doesn't align with the person you want to "be." Define your own essence by taking one action today that feels authentically yours, regardless of what anyone else expects. Use that freedom. It’s the only thing you truly have.