Emily Dickinson Lexicon

EX'I-GENCE, or EX'I-GEN-CY, n. [L. exigens, from exigo, to exact; ex and ago, to drive.]

1. Demand; urgency; urgent need or want. We speak of the exigence of the case; the exigence of the times, or of business.
2. Pressing necessity; distress; any case which demands immediate action, supply or remedy. A wise man adapts his measures to his exigences. In the present exigency, no time is to be lost.