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definitions

potential

[ puh-ten-shuh l ]
/ pəˈtɛn ʃəl /
||
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adjective

noun

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RELATED WORDS

likely, hidden, possible, probable, capability, power, capacity, ability, potentiality, budding, future, wherewithal, aptitude, conceivable, dormant, embryonic, imaginable, implied, inherent, latent

Nearby words

  1. potemkin, grigori aleksandrovich,
  2. potence,
  3. potency,
  4. potent,
  5. potentate,
  6. potential cautery,
  7. potential difference,
  8. potential divider,
  9. potential energy,
  10. potential gradient

Origin of potential

1350–1400; Middle English potencial (< Old French) < Late Latin potentiālis. See potency, -al1
SYNONYMS FOR potential
2. See latent. 5. capacity, potency.
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR potential ON THESAURUS.COM
Related formsnon·po·ten·tial, adjective, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for potential

British Dictionary definitions for potential

potential

/ (pəˈtɛnʃəl) /

adjective

  1. possible but not yet actual
  2. (prenominal)capable of being or becoming but not yet in existence; latent
grammar (of a verb or form of a verb) expressing possibility, as English may and might
an archaic word for potent 1

noun

latent but unrealized ability or capacityJones has great potential as a sales manager
grammar a potential verb or verb form
short for electric potential
Derived Formspotentially, adverb

Word Origin for potential

C14: from Old French potencial, from Late Latin potentiālis, from Latin potentia power
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for potential

potential

adj.

late 14c., "possible" (as opposed to actual), from Old French potenciel and directly from Late Latin potentialis "potential," from Latin potentia "power, might, force;" figuratively "political power, authority, influence," from potens "powerful" (see potent). The noun, meaning "that which is possible," is first attested 1817, from the adjective.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Medicine definitions for potential

potential

[ pə-tĕn′shəl ]

adj.

Capable of being but not yet in existence; latent.

n.

The inherent ability or capacity for growth, development, or coming into being.
The work required to bring a unit electric charge, magnetic pole, or mass from an infinitely distant position to a designated point in a static electric, magnetic, or gravitational field, respectively.
The potential energy of a unit charge at any point in an electric circuit measured with respect to a specified reference point in the circuit or to ground; voltage.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.