potential — English Dictionary

Noun

1. A currently unrealized ability (with the most common adposition being to).

   Usage

   • Countable
   • Uncountable

   Examples

   Even from a young age it was clear that she had the potential to become a great musician.

   Comrades, our own fleet doesn't know our full potential. They will do everything possible to test us, but they will only test their own embarrassment.

   More examples (1)

   With some technical improvement, I could see how the process of imitating my work would soon become fast and streamlined, and the many dark potentials bubbled to the forefront of my mind.

2. The gravitational potential: the radial (irrotational, static) component of a gravitational field, also known as the Newtonian potential or the gravitoelectric field.

   Usage

   • Countable
   • Uncountable

3. 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.

   Usage

   • Countable
   • Uncountable

4. A verbal construction or form stating something is possible or probable.

   Usage

   • Countable
   • Uncountable

Adjective

1. Existing in possibility, not in actuality.

   Usage

   • not-comparable

   Synonyms

   noumenalspiritualvirtual

   Antonyms

   actualphenomenalreal

   Examples

   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

   Usage

   • Archaic
   • not-comparable

   Synonyms

   efficaciousinfluential

   Examples

   And hath, in his effect, a voice potential

3. irrotational

   Usage

   • not-comparable
   • of a field

   Examples

   From Maxwell equations (6.20) it follows that the electric field is potential: E(r) = −gradφ(r).

4. irrotational (see potential flow on Wikipedia)

   Usage

   • not-comparable
   • of a flow

   Examples

   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.

   Usage

   • not-comparable

Adjective

1. existing in possibility

   Synonyms

   possible

   Antonyms

   actual

   Examples

   a potential problem

   possible uses of nuclear power

2. expected to become or be; in prospect

   Synonyms

   likely

   Examples

   potential clients

Noun

1. the inherent capacity for coming into being

   Synonyms

   potentialitypotency

   Broader terms

   possibilitypossibleness

2. the difference in electrical charge between two points in a circuit expressed in volts

   Synonyms

   electric potentialpotential differencepotential dropvoltage

   Broader terms

   electrical phenomenon