raison d'etre

In exchange, the subject’s greatness will be treated as an assumption, the raison d’etre for the book itself.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2023

So they feel like it is their signature, their raison d’etre.

From Slate ● Mar. 28, 2023

“We will flourish until our raison d’etre for being people’s lawyers ceases.”

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 15, 2022

But some serving and recently retired RAF officers, who the BBC has spoken to, question whether he has lost sight of the raison d'etre of the RAF - to fight and win wars?

From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2022

Some golden day, of course, he would have many millions; meanwhile he possessed a raison d'etre in the theoretical creation of essays on the popes of the Renaissance.

From The Beautiful and Damned by F. Scott (Francis Scott) Fitzgerald

That the “The Napa Boys” won’t be everyone’s cup of tea — or in this case, goblet of wine — almost feels like this meta comedy’s raison d’être.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 27, 2026

But, for smaller companies whose AI offerings are their raison d’être, there are pros and cons of the new era.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 18, 2026

BeReal’s appeal ended the second the app started pushing users to friend randos and post more than once a day, defeating its entire raison d’être.

From Slate ● Dec. 14, 2025

Not far away, at Pepa Bar a Vins, irreverence was the raison d’être.

From Salon ● Dec. 6, 2025

The raison d’être of the increased activity is obscure but it is possible that the salt renders the organisms more susceptible to the action of the germicide.

From Chlorination of Water by Joseph Race