n., pl., rai·sons d'être (rā'zōn, rĕ-zôN).
Reason or justification for existing.
[French : raison, reason + de, of, for + être, to be.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
