sine qua non

noun

si·​ne qua non ˌsi-ni-ˌkwä-ˈnän  -ˈnōn 

 also  ˌsē-;

 also  ˌsī-ni-ˌkwā-ˈnän

plural sine qua nons also sine quibus non -ˌkwi-(ˌ)bu̇s- 

 also  -ˌkwī-

: something absolutely indispensable or essential

reliability is a sine qua non for success

Did you know?

Sine qua non can be translated literally as "Without which, not." Though this may sound like gibberish, it means more or less "Without (something), (something else) won't be possible." Sine qua non sounds slightly literary, and it shouldn't be used just anywhere. But it actually shows up in many contexts, including business ("A solid customer base is the sine qua non to success"), show business ("A good agent is a sine qua non for an actor's career"), and politics ("His support was really the sine qua non for her candidacy").

Synonyms

• condition
• demand
• essential
• must
• must-have
• necessary
• necessity
• need
• needful
• requirement
• requisite

Examples of sine qua non in a Sentence

Patience is a sine qua non for this job.

an extensive grounding in mathematics is a sine qua non for a career in architecture

Recent Examples on the Web

Some are fast to embrace the admittedly exciting bold new possibilities of Artificial Intelligence as the future sine qua non of effective schooling. —Vicki Phillips, Forbes, 15 Jan. 2025

Season 2 fulfills this sine qua non with deceptive ease. —Alison Herman, Variety, 7 Jan. 2025

Frequency Becomes Unstable Frequency is the sine qua non of all electrical systems, from microgrids to the national grid. —Llewellyn King, Forbes, 22 Nov. 2024

This consensus mechanism is a sine qua non for verifying transactions without relying on a central authority. —Gary Weinstein, Forbes, 22 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Late Latin, without which not

First Known Use

1602, in the meaning defined above