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being, existing, or occurring at this time or now; current:
increasing respect for the present ruler of the small country.
at this time; at hand; immediate:
articles for present use.
grammar.

noting an action or state occurring at the moment of speaking or writing: knows is a present form in he knows that.
noting or pertaining to a tense or other verb formation with such meaning.

being with one or others or in the specified or understood place:
to be present at the wedding.
being here:
is everyone present?
existing or occurring in a place, thing, combination, or the like:
carbon is present in many minerals.
being actually here or under consideration:
the present doc-ment; the present topic.
being before the mind.
obsolete. mentally alert and calm, especially in emergencies.
obsolete. immediate or instant.
the present time.
grammar.

the present tense.
a verb formation or construction with present meaning.
a form in the present.

presents, law. the present writings, or this doc-ment, used in a deed of conveyance, a lease, etc., to denote the doc-ment itself:
know all men by these presents that . . . .
obsolete. the matter in hand.
at present, at the present time or moment; now:
there are no job openings here at present.
for the present, for now; temporarily:
for the present, we must be content with matters as they stand.
adjective
(prenominal) in existence at the moment in time at which an utterance is spoken or written
(postpositive) being in a specified place, thing, etc: the murderer is present in this room
(prenominal) now in consideration or under discussion: the present topic, the present author
(grammar) denoting a tense of verbs used when the action or event described is occurring at the time of utterance or when the speaker does not wish to make any explicit temporal reference
(archaic) readily available; instant: present help is at hand
(archaic) mentally alert; attentive
noun
the present, the time being; now
(grammar)

the present tense
a verb in this tense

at present, at the moment; now
for the present, for the time being; temporarily
verb (mainly transitive) (prɪˈzɛnt)
to introduce (a person) to another, esp to someone of higher rank
to introduce to the public: to present a play
to introduce and compere (a radio or television show)
to show; exhibit: he presented a brave face to the world
to put forward; submit: she presented a proposal for a new book
to bring or suggest to the mind: to present a problem
to give or award: to present a prize
to endow with or as if with a gift or award: to present a university with a foundation scholarship
to offer formally: to present one’s compliments
to offer or hand over for action or settlement: to present a bill
to represent or depict in a particular manner: the actor presented hamlet as a very young man
to salute someone with (one’s weapon) (usually in the phrase present arms)
to aim or point (a weapon)
to nominate (a clergyman) to a bishop for inst-tution to a benefice in his diocese
to lay (a charge, etc) before a court, magistrate, etc, for consideration or trial
to bring a formal charge or accusation against (a person); indict
(mainly us) (of a grand jury) to take notice of (an offence) from personal knowledge or observation, before any bill of indictment has been drawn up
(intransitive) (med) to seek treatment for a particular symptom or problem: she presented with postnatal depression
(intransitive) (informal) to produce a favourable, etc impression: she presents well in public, he presents as harmless but has poisoned his family
present oneself, to appear, esp at a specific time and place
noun (ˈprɛzənt)
anything that is presented; a gift
make someone a present of something, to give someone something: i’ll make you a present of a new car
adj.

c.1300, “existing at the time,” from old french present “evident, at hand, within reach;” as a noun, “the present time” (11c., modern french présent) and directly from latin praesentem (nominative praesens) “present, at hand, in sight; immediate; prompt, instant; contemporary,” from present participle of præesse “be before (someone or something), be at hand,” from prae- “before” (see pre-) + esse “to be” (see essence). meaning “being there” is from mid-14c. in english. as a grammatical tense, recorded from late 14c.
v.

c.1300, “introduce (someone or something) formally or ceremonially;” also “make a formal presentation of; give as a gift or award; bestow,” from old french presenter (11c., modern french présenter) and directly from latin praesentare “to place before, show, exhibit,” from stem of praesens (see present (adj.)). from late 14c. as “exhibit (something), offer for inspection, display;” also, in law, “make a formal complaint or charge of wrongdoing.” from c.1400 as”represent, portray.” related: presented; presenting.
n.

“this point in time” (opposed to past and future), c.1300, “the present time,” also “act or fact of being present; portion of sp-ce around someone,” from old french present (n.) from latin praesens “being there” (see present (adj.)). in old legalese, these presents means “these doc-ments.”

c.1200, “thing offered, what is offered or given as a gift,” from old french present and medieval latin presentia, from phrases such as french en present “(to offer) in the presence of,” mettre en present “place before, give,” from late latin inpraesent “face to face,” from latin in re praesenti “in the situation in question,” from praesens “being there” (see present (adj.)), on the notion of “bringing something into someone’s presence.”

present pre·sent (prĭ-zěnt’)
v. pre·sent·ed, pre·sent·ing, pre·sents

to appear or be felt first during birth. used of the part of the fetus that proceeds first through the birth c-n-l.

to come before a doctor or nurse, as with a medical problem or condition.

to manifest a symptom.

also, at the present time. now, as in i’ve not enough cash at present to lend you any, or at present the house is still occupied. this slightly longer way of saying “at this time” formerly was even longer— at this present or at that present—denoting a more specific time. [ mid-1600s ]
also see: at this point
see:

all present and accounted for
at present
for the moment (present)
no time like the present