SUBSISTENCE

noun Etymology: Middle English, from Late Latin subsistentia, from subsistent-, subsistens, present participle of subsistere Date: 15th century 1. a. real being ; existence , the condition of remaining in existence ; continuation , persistence , an essential characteristic quality of something that exists, the character possessed by whatever is logically conceivable, means of subsisting: as, the minimum (as of food and shelter) necessary to support life, a source or means of obtaining the necessities of life, subsistent adjective