noun
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the state or condition of being possible
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anything that is possible
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a competitor, candidate, etc, who has a moderately good chance of winning, being chosen, etc
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(often plural) a future prospect or potential
my new house has great possibilities
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of possibility
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English possibilite, from Late Latin possibilitās, from Latin possibil(is) possible + -itās -ity
Explanation
If something could realistically happen, it's a possibility. So winning the lottery is a slight possibility, but becoming king of the world is not even a remote possibility. In one sense, a possibility is an option: "One possibility is that the UFO is just a shooting star." It can also mean more of a potential: "This house might look like an abandoned shack, but it's got so much possibility!" All meanings of possibility share the sense that something is able to happen, or is possible. The Latin root is possibilis, "that can be done."
Vocabulary lists containing possibility
"LAFFF"
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President Obama's second inaugural address
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"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 9
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The researchers included this possibility directly in their supply chain models.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 7, 2026
The Gunners were prepared to make the Brazil forward their primary target should he decide to leave Real Madrid, and the 26-year-old was open to the possibility.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
“First, the possibility that he might say something false and be prosecutable for perjury under federal law. Second, possibility that something he said might conceivably be used by some state government to prosecute him criminally.”
From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2026
You may already be grieving the possibility of loss while your brother is still here and while you are actively helping him through his exhaustive cancer treatment.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
Even better, the tale included pretty young women, a mysterious murder, and the possibility of scandal—all elements that the reading public couldn’t resist.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
More precise measurements from upcoming observatories and cosmic surveys could help scientists determine which hidden interactions dark matter might possess and which possibilities observations can rule out.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 2, 2026
The case for patience on inflation rests on a few possibilities.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
Whether those possibilities laid out above - including more countries getting actively involved - prove correct remains uncertain.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
"In Sweden our possibilities for extracting REE, even when compared internationally, are relatively good," he says.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 24, 2026
Jefferson himself thought in this French fashion, Adams claimed, confusing the seductive prospects envisioned in his imagination with the more limited possibilities history permitted.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
