omnipotence
AmericanEtymology
Origin of omnipotence
First recorded in 1560–70; from Late Latin omnipotentia, from Latin omnipotent-, stem of omnipotēns “all-powerful” ( see omnipotent) + -ia -y 3 ( def. ); see -ence
Explanation
Omnipotence is unlimited power. Bosses who behave as if they have omnipotence believe they have absolute power over the employees, maybe even down to the type of ink pens they are allowed to use. The noun omnipotence describes having an enormous amount of power, or even an infinite amount. A giant corporation might appear to have omnipotence because of the control it has over its workers, the power it holds in government, and the monopoly it might have in its industry — it seems to be everywhere. Omnipotence basically means the quality of being Godlike. To pronounce it correctly, say "om-NIH-poe-tense."
Vocabulary lists containing omnipotence
A Brief History of Time
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Doctor Faustus
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Selection Vocabulary 2, Unit 4
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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.
The pope described the Kingdom of God as a "bulwark against that delusion of omnipotence that surrounds us and is becoming increasingly unpredictable and aggressive."
From Barron's ● Apr. 11, 2026
That tension between omnipotence and powerlessness is captured in a word: adolescence.
From Salon ● Dec. 14, 2025
In Mr. Anderson’s account of the fall of Iran’s shah in 1979, both the Iranian government and most of the Americans on the ground have a false sense of American omnipotence.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 12, 2025
What it emphatically cannot mean is acceding to powerlessness in the face of a bunch of institutions that are working to make it seem as if their omnipotence is inevitable, or irrevocable, or constitutionally overdetermined.
From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2025
My wickedness five years ago, or six, or twelve, has no existence except as now, mumbling, mumbling, sacrificing the slain world to the omnipotence of words, I strain my memory to regain it.
From "Grendel" by John Gardner
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
