What does "potential" mean?
A currently unrealized ability (with the most common adposition being to).
Potential
/po(ʊ)ˈtɛnʃəl/ adj, noun
adj, noun ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A currently unrealized ability (with the most common adposition being to).
- Grammar: potential is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: ability, ability, ability to cause change, aptitude.
- Useful contrasts: actual, actual performance, effective case.
- Usage evidence: Education aims to develop potential abilities.
How to use "potential"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "potential" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "potential" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "potential" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "potential" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "potential" is acting as adj, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "ability" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "potential", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A currently unrealized ability (with the most common adposition being to). countable, uncountable
"Even from a young age it was clear that she had the potential to become a great musician."
- 2 the difference in electrical charge between two points in a circuit expressed in volts wordnet
- 3 The gravitational potential: the radial (irrotational, static) component of a gravitational field, also known as the Newtonian potential or the gravitoelectric field. countable, uncountable
- 4 the inherent capacity for coming into being wordnet
- 5 The work (energy) required to move a reference particle from a reference location to a specified location in the presence of a force field, for example to bring a unit positive electric charge from an infinite distance to a specified point against an electric field. countable, uncountable
Show 1 more definition
- 6 A verbal construction or form stating something is possible or probable. countable, uncountable
Adjective
- 1 Existing in possibility, not in actuality. not-comparable
"The heroic man,—and is not every man, God be thanked, a potential hero?—has to do so, in all times and circumstances."
- 2 Being potent; endowed with energy adequate to a result archaic, not-comparable
"And hath, in his effect, a voice potential"
- 3 irrotational not-comparable
"From Maxwell equations (6.20) it follows that the electric field is potential: E(r) = −gradφ(r)."
- 4 irrotational (see potential flow on Wikipedia) not-comparable
"The non-viscous flow of the vacuum should be potential (irrotational)."
- 5 Referring to a verbal construction of form stating something is possible or probable. not-comparable
Adjective
- 1 existing in possibility wordnet
- 2 expected to become or be; in prospect wordnet
Example
"Education aims to develop potential abilities."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "potential"?
Common synonyms include: ability, ability, ability to cause change, aptitude, aptitude, aptitudes.
How do you use "potential" in a sentence?
Education aims to develop potential abilities.
How do you pronounce "potential"?
Pronounced /po(ʊ)ˈtɛnʃəl/.
Etymology
From Late Latin potentialis, from Latin potentia (“power”), from potens (“powerful”). By surface analysis, potent + -ial.