in posse

American  

[in pos-e, in pos-ee] / ɪn ˈpɒs ɛ, ɪn ˈpɒs i /

adverb

Latin.

1. in possibility; potentially (contrasted with in esse).

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in posse British  

/ ɪn ˈpɒsɪ /

adjective

1. possible; potential Compare in esse

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Etymology

Origin of in posse

First recorded in 1590–1600

Example Sentences

I am possessed of two separate powers�the one in esse and the other in posse.

From Time Magazine Archive

No urchin so ragged that he does not proclaim the printed wares of a millionaire in esse or in posse.

From Social Transformations of the Victorian Age A Survey of Court and Country by Escott, T. H. S. (Thomas Hay Sweet)

Every up-to-date dictionary should say that "peace" and "war" mean the same thing, now in posse, now in actu.

From Memories and Studies by James, Henry

Now Sir Robert Peel thinks better of natural history, chemistry, and astronomy than of such ethics; but these too, what are they more than divinity in posse?

From An Essay In Aid Of A Grammar Of Assent by Newman, John Henry

Near it was the shaft through whose incursion into Mother Earth's interior the esse, to be so much more noble in posse, had been reft by hard and honest toil.

From Nevermore by Bolderwood, Rolf