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sine qua non
[ sahy-nee kwey non, kwah, sin-ey; Latin si-ne kwah-nohn ]
noun
- an indispensable condition, element, or factor; something essential:
Her presence was the sine qua non of every social event.
sine qua non
/ ˈsaɪnɪ kweɪ ˈnɒn /
noun
- an essential condition or requirement
sine qua non
- 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.”
Word History and Origins
Origin of sine qua non1
Word History and Origins
Origin of sine qua non1
Idioms and Phrases
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.Example Sentences
The photo-op had supplanted policy as the sine qua non of political discourse.
The core of the Jan. 6 case is a breathtaking effort to exhort supporters to commit an insurrection and prevent the peaceful transfer of power, the sine qua non of a democracy.
What I did in the meantime — because I knew that I had to be there and eat the food, and know the people, and that was sine qua non.
Impartiality is the sine qua non for any jurist, therefore, the privilege of a lifetime appointment requires strict avoidance of even the slightest appearance of partisanship.
But a first hostage deal “is the sine qua non of the administration’s larger regional deal,” said Martin S. Indyk, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel.
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from 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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