存在
そんざい · sonzai · JLPT N3 · noun
being
存在 = keep/exist (存) + be present (在): what stays and is here
存 means to keep or remain, as in 保存 (hozon, preserve). 在 means to be somewhere, as in 在る (aru, to exist). Something that stays and is present simply exists, so 存在 means existence.
存 — 才 (talent/sprout) + 子 (child)
Originally written with 才 (a sprout breaking ground) over 子 (child), suggesting a child being raised or kept alive. The character came to mean 'to exist, to remain, to preserve.' Modern uses like 存在 (exist) and 保存 (preserve) reflect this core sense of continued being.
在 — earth 土 + phonetic 才
Originally a phono-semantic compound: 土 (earth) gives the meaning of a place or location, while 才 supplies the sound. It came to mean 'to be present/located at,' and now also serves as a grammatical marker for ongoing actions, like 'in the middle of doing.'