Question:
Given below are a few commonly used foreign language phrases, select the correct answer from the four options given below.
Raison d'etre
Given below are a few commonly used foreign language phrases, select the correct answer from the four options given below.
Raison d'etre
Raison d'etre
Show Hint
"Etre" is the French verb "to be", so the phrase literally reads "reason of being". Remember that "reason" here means purpose, not logic.
Updated On: Jul 17, 2026
- logical conclusion
- reason for existence
- free choice
- dubious argument
Show Solution
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The Correct Option is B
Solution and Explanation
Step 1: Understanding the Question.
The phrase is "raison d'etre", and we must pick its English meaning from four options. Like carte blanche earlier in this set, this one is French.
Step 2: Key Approach.
Translate word by word. "Raison" means reason, from the same root as the English word. "De" means of, and "etre" is the French verb meaning to be. So "raison d'etre" is literally "reason of being".
Step 3: Detailed Explanation.
The phrase names the single purpose that justifies why a person, an institution or a thing exists at all. If you ask what a body is for and remove that answer, there would be no point in the body continuing. For example, "protecting fundamental rights is the raison d'etre of the Supreme Court's writ jurisdiction" means that purpose is the reason the jurisdiction exists.
Option (B), "reason for existence", is that meaning stated in plain English, so it is correct.
Step 4: Why the other options are wrong.
Option (A) "logical conclusion" is the trap for anyone who sees only "raison" and thinks of reasoning or logic. Here "reason" means purpose or ground, not the process of drawing an inference.
Option (C) "free choice" has no link to any word in the phrase; that idea would be closer to carte blanche.
Option (D) "dubious argument" again reads "raison" as an argument and then adds a negative colour the phrase does not carry. A raison d'etre is a serious justifying purpose, not a weak claim.
Final Answer:
Raison d'etre means reason of being, that is, the reason for existence. The answer is option (B).
The phrase is "raison d'etre", and we must pick its English meaning from four options. Like carte blanche earlier in this set, this one is French.
Step 2: Key Approach.
Translate word by word. "Raison" means reason, from the same root as the English word. "De" means of, and "etre" is the French verb meaning to be. So "raison d'etre" is literally "reason of being".
Step 3: Detailed Explanation.
The phrase names the single purpose that justifies why a person, an institution or a thing exists at all. If you ask what a body is for and remove that answer, there would be no point in the body continuing. For example, "protecting fundamental rights is the raison d'etre of the Supreme Court's writ jurisdiction" means that purpose is the reason the jurisdiction exists.
Option (B), "reason for existence", is that meaning stated in plain English, so it is correct.
Step 4: Why the other options are wrong.
Option (A) "logical conclusion" is the trap for anyone who sees only "raison" and thinks of reasoning or logic. Here "reason" means purpose or ground, not the process of drawing an inference.
Option (C) "free choice" has no link to any word in the phrase; that idea would be closer to carte blanche.
Option (D) "dubious argument" again reads "raison" as an argument and then adds a negative colour the phrase does not carry. A raison d'etre is a serious justifying purpose, not a weak claim.
Final Answer:
Raison d'etre means reason of being, that is, the reason for existence. The answer is option (B).
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