exist

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 在 is associated with existing or being somewhere; its on-reading is ざい.
• Basic usage: 存在(そんざい) means existence or presence, while 不在(ふざい) means being absent.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Family presence and the person in charge being away
  • 家族の存在が彼の心の支えになった means that his family's presence sustained him emotionally.
  • 担当者は午後まで不在です means that the person in charge is away until the afternoon.