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Which power does the superhero Mister Fantastic have?

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power

American  

[pau-er] / ˈpaʊ ər /

noun

• powers
  plural

1. ability to do or act; capability of doing or accomplishing something.

   Everyone has the power to better themselves.

   Synonyms:

   capacity

   Antonyms:

   incapacity

2. political or national strength.

   The Second World War changed the balance of power in Europe.

3. great or marked ability to do or act; strength; might; force.

   Synonyms:

   energy

   Antonyms:

   weakness

4. the possession of control or command over people; authority; influence.

   Words have tremendous power over our minds.

5. political ascendancy or control in the government of a country, state, etc..

   They attained power by overthrowing the legal government.

   Synonyms:

   sovereignty, rule, sway, ascendancy

6. legal ability, capacity, or authority.

   the legislative powers vested in Congress.

7. delegated authority; authority granted to a person or persons in a particular office or capacity.

   a delegate with power to mediate disputes.

8. a document or written statement conferring legal authority.

9. a person or thing that possesses or exercises authority or influence.

10. a state or nation having international authority or influence.

    The great powers held an international conference.

11. a military or naval force.

    The Spanish Armada was a mighty power.

12. Often powers a deity; divinity.

    the heavenly powers.

13. Theology. powers, an order of angels.

14. Dialect. a large number or amount.

    There's a power of good eatin' at the church social.

15. Physics.

    1. work done or energy transferred per unit of time. P

    2. the time rate of doing work.

16. mechanical energy as distinguished from hand labor.

    The factory recently began using looms driven by power.

17. a particular form of mechanical or physical energy.

    hydroelectric power.

18. energy, force, or momentum.

    The door slammed shut, seemingly under its own power.

19. Mathematics.

    1. the product obtained by multiplying a quantity by itself one or more times.

       The third power of 2 is 8.

    2. (of a numberx ) a number whose logarithm is a times the logarithm of x (and is called the a th power ofx ). Symbolically, y = xa is a number that satisfies the equation log y = a log x.

    3. the exponent of an expression, as a in xa.

    4. cardinal number.

20. Optics.

    1. the magnifying capacity of a microscope, telescope, etc., expressed as the ratio of the diameter of the image to the diameter of the object.

    2. the reciprocal of the focal length of a lens.

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verb (used with object)

• powers,
  present (3rd person singular)
• powered,
  past participle,  past
• powering
  present participle

1. to supply with electricity or other means of power.

   Atomic energy powers the new submarines.

2. to give power to; make powerful.

   An outstanding quarterback powered the team in its upset victory.

3. to inspire; spur; sustain.

   A strong faith in divine goodness powers his life.

4. (of a fuel, engine, or any source able to do work) to supply force to operate (a machine).

   An electric motor powers this drill.

5. to drive or push by applying power.

   She powered the car expertly up the winding mountain road.

adjective

1. operated or driven by a motor or electricity.

   a power mower;

   power tools.

2. power-assisted.

   cars with power brakes and power windows.

3. conducting electricity.

   a power cable.

4. Informal. expressing or exerting power, especially in business; involving or characteristic of those having authority or influence.

   She dressed for court in hose, heels, and a conservative power suit.

   The corporate-sponsored lobbyists are fueled by power breakfasts of ice-cold orange juice and croissants.

verb phrase

1. power down to shut off.

2. power up to turn on.

idioms

1. power behind the throne, someone or something that has a great deal of influence and control despite lacking official status.

   Although the chairman is ostensibly in charge, his secretary makes all the decisions and is the real power behind the throne.

2. the powers that be, those in supreme command; the authorities.

   The decision is in the hands of the powers that be.

power British  

/ ˈpaʊə /

noun

1. ability or capacity to do something

2. (often plural) a specific ability, capacity, or faculty

3. political, financial, social, etc, force or influence

4. control or dominion or a position of control, dominion, or authority

5. a state or other political entity with political, industrial, or military strength

6. a person who exercises control, influence, or authority

   he's a power in the state

7. a prerogative, privilege, or liberty

8. 1. legal authority to act, esp in a specified capacity, for another

   2. the document conferring such authority

9. 1. a military force

   2. military potential

10. maths

    1. the value of a number or quantity raised to some exponent

    2. another name for exponent

11. statistics the probability of rejecting the null hypothesis in a test when it is false. The power of a test of a given null depends on the particular alternative hypothesis against which it is tested

12. P. physics engineering a measure of the rate of doing work expressed as the work done per unit time. It is measured in watts, horsepower, etc

13. 1. the rate at which electrical energy is fed into or taken from a device or system. It is expressed, in a direct-current circuit, as the product of current and voltage and, in an alternating-current circuit, as the product of the effective values of the current and voltage and the cosine of the phase angle between them. It is measured in watts

    2. ( as modifier )

       a power amplifier

14. the ability to perform work

15. 1. mechanical energy as opposed to manual labour

    2. ( as modifier )

       a power mower

16. a particular form of energy

    nuclear power

17. 1. a measure of the ability of a lens or optical system to magnify an object, equal to the reciprocal of the focal length. It is measured in dioptres

    2. another word for magnification

18. informal a large amount or quantity

    a power of good

19. (plural) the sixth of the nine orders into which the angels are traditionally divided in medieval angelology

20. (often foll by an infinitive) able or allowed (to)

21. under the control or sway of someone

22. the established authority or administration

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verb

1. to give or provide power to

2. to fit (a machine) with a motor or engine

3. slang (intr) to travel with great speed or force

power Scientific  

/ pou′ər /

1. The source of energy used to operate a machine or other system.

2. The rate at which work is done, or energy expended, per unit time. Power is usually measured in watts (especially for electrical power) or horsepower (especially for mechanical power). For a path conducting electrical current, such as a component in an electric circuit, P = VI, where P is the power dissipated along the path, V is the voltage across the path, and I is the current through the path.

3. Compare energy work

4. Mathematics The number of times a number or expression is multiplied by itself, as shown by an exponent. Thus ten to the sixth power, or 10 ⁶, equals one million.

5. A number that represents the magnification of an optical instrument, such as a microscope or telescope. A 500-power microscope can magnify an image to 500 times its original size.

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power More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing power

• corridors of power
• more power to someone
• staying power

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Synonym Usage

See strength.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• counterpower
  noun
• repower
  verb
• de-power
  verb (used with object)

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• powers
  plural

Participles

• powering
  present
• powered
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• power
  simple
• powers
  simple
• have powered
  perfect
• has powered
  perfect
• am powering
  progressive
• are powering
  progressive
• is powering
  progressive
• have been powering
  perfect progressive
• has been powering
  perfect progressive

Past

• powered
  simple
• had powered
  perfect
• was powering
  progressive
• were powering
  progressive
• had been powering
  perfect progressive

Future

• will power
  simple
• will have powered
  perfect
• will be powering
  progressive
• will have been powering
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of power

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English poair(e), poer(e), poeir, power, from Anglo-French, Old French po(u)eir, poer, poor, noun use of infinitive poe(i)r, pooir “to be able,” from Vulgar Latin potēre (unrecorded), replacing Latin posse “to be able, have power”; cf. potent ¹ ( def. ), puissant ( def. )

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Explanation

Someone with power has physical strength or they're in control of things. So a weakling who's in charge of a business still has a lot of power. Power comes from the Latin word potere, which means "to be able." But things with power are much more than able — they're able to exert a lot of force. "The powers that be" are those who hold authority, and "the power behind the throne" refers to the people who exert influence without being formally in charge. When used as a verb, power means "to supply with mechanical or electrical energy," as in a nuclear-powered submarine.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

power powers powered powering

Tech companies were already struggling to secure enough computing power to meet growing demand for their products.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026

As a missionary, parish priest and later as bishop in northern Peru he ministered to the poor, denounced the excesses of power and lobbied for action on climate change.

From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026

In the Philippines' Batanes archipelago, seaside highways shut as huge waves crashed onto the shore, and in southern Japan's Okinawa islands, power was cut to 15,000 homes.

From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2026

Independent power generators have been seen as eventual winners in an environment where AI-related power demand — and electricity prices — are on the rise.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 4, 2026

He could feel its power: sending strength to the bear, sapping his own will of hope and resolve.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver

Singapore's parliament moved on Wednesday to toughen its anti-haze law with arrest powers, bigger fines and potential restrictions on companies linked to transboundary air pollution from wildfires.

From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2026

Left unsaid was that even without control of Congress, American presidents still have broad powers that they can exercise.

From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2026

Others say it will take new ideas and big swings that can be challenging in a city where the mayor has only limited powers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026

Its sudden, historic emergence as one of the world’s top maritime powers is challenging the U.S. on a scale it hasn’t faced since World War II.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

“Remember, Danny? One of her powers was invisibility!”

From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova

The Wall Street Journal reported in July that SpaceX was developing a mobile handset prototype powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chipsets.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 4, 2026

The Chinese navy’s rise has been powered by the country’s rapid emergence as a colossus in shipbuilding and as the biggest sea-trading nation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

Long-striding, hard-fending Chapman scored a double down the left and fellow wing Abbi Church powered through weak tackles on the right.

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

Scientists first developed molecular motors powered directly by electricity in 2011.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 1, 2026

It consisted of a single piston, powered by the pressure of the atmosphere.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

But powering that growth requires significant upfront AI investment.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 4, 2026

Huang is often caught between the world’s two leading economies, seeking to keep them both hooked on the chips powering leading AI models.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

Economic data on Thursday underscored that the U.S. economy keeps powering along — despite higher borrowing costs — in no small part because of the artificial-intelligence spending boom.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 29, 2026

Samsung is the world's largest maker of memory chips -- components in short supply as advanced types are snapped up for use in data centres powering artificial intelligence.

From Barron's ● Oct. 29, 2026

“Glean them all!” said Chomsky, powering up his weapon.

From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman

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