substance

Definitions of substance in various dictionaries:

noun - the real physical matter of which a person or thing consists

noun - the choicest or most essential or most vital part of some idea or experience

noun - the idea that is intended

noun - material of a particular kind or constitution

noun - considerable capital (wealth or income)

noun - what a communication that is about something is about

noun - a particular kind or species of matter with uniform properties

That which has mass and occupies space; matter.

A material of a particular kind or constitution.

Essential nature; essence.

Gist; heart.

That which is solid and practical in character, quality, or importance: a plan without substance.

Density; body: Air has little substance.

The central meaning shared by these noun s is “the essential import or significance of something spoken or written”: the substance of her complaint; the burden of the President’s speech; the core of an article; the gist of the prosecutor’s argument; the pith and marrow of an essay; the purport of a document.