To coexist means to live together in the same place or at the same time, even when you have differences. When two species of birds coexist in the same forest, they share the space without one driving the other away. When different religions coexist in a city, people with different beliefs live side by side as neighbors.

The word often appears when talking about groups that might seem incompatible but manage to share space peacefully. In your classroom, students with wildly different interests and personalities coexist every day. Cats and dogs can coexist in the same house once they get used to each other. Different operating systems can coexist on computer networks.

Coexistence (the noun form) doesn't necessarily mean everyone becomes friends or agrees about everything. It means finding ways to occupy the same space without constant conflict. Scientists study how predators and prey coexist in ecosystems, each playing their role without wiping out the other. Historians examine how different cultures have coexisted throughout history, sometimes peacefully, sometimes uneasily, but sharing the same world nonetheless.