Dictionary.com

potential

[ puh-ten-shuhl ]
/ pəˈtɛn ʃəl /
See synonyms for potential on Thesaurus.com

adjective

noun

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Origin of potential

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English potencial (from Old French ), from Late Latin potentiālis. See potency, -al1

synonym study for potential

2. See latent.

OTHER WORDS FROM potential

non·po·ten·tial, adjective, noun

Words nearby potential

Potemkin village, potence, potency, potent, potentate, potential, potential cautery, potential difference, potential divider, potential energy, potential gradient
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Words related to potential

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

Example sentences 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 forms of potential

potentially, 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

Medical 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.