Existential means relating to existence itself, or to the fundamental questions about why we exist and what our lives mean. When someone asks an existential question, they're wondering about big, deep things: Why are we here? What makes life meaningful? What happens when we die?

You might have existential thoughts when you look up at the stars and feel suddenly small, realizing how vast the universe is. Or when you wonder what you want to do with your life in the long run, far beyond immediate concerns. These are existential moments because they're about existence itself, about the deepest questions of being alive and aware.

The word also appears in the phrase existential threat, meaning a danger that threatens someone's or something's very existence. A company facing bankruptcy faces an existential crisis because the business itself might cease to exist.

When something is existential, it touches the core of what it means to be alive and aware. These questions can feel overwhelming because they're so enormous, but humans have been pondering them for thousands of years. Philosophy, religion, and literature all explore existential themes, trying to help us understand our place in the universe.