I. pəˈtenchəl, pōˈ- adjective
Etymology: Middle English potencial, from Late Latin potentialis potential, powerful, from Late Latin potentia dynamis, state of that which is not yet fully realized & Latin potentia potency, power + Latin -alis -al
1.
a. : existing in possibility : having the capacity or a strong possibility for development into a state of actuality
field studies of existing and potential book markets — Collier's Year Book
the detection of incipient or potential disease of the nervous system — H.G.Armstrong
too small to provide … for the potential needs for reconstruction and development that will emerge in the postwar years — L.G.Melville
potential leader
potential profit
potential use
— compare actual
b. : having the capacity for acting or being acted upon and hence for undergoing change — compare potency
2. archaic : potent II
3. : expressing possibility
potential subjunctive
specifically : of, relating to, or constituting a verb phrase expressing possibility, liberty, or power by the use of an auxiliary (as may, can ) with the infinitive of the verb (as in “it may rain”, “he can write”)
Synonyms: see latent
II. noun
( -s )
1. : something that exists in a state of potency or possibility for changing or developing into a state of actuality
industrial location in new areas will make use of labor and other potentials which might otherwise remain untapped — New Republic
a sound source with an unplumbed potential for novelty and expression — Time
in joining together at fertilization, germ cells add to the total gene potential of an organism by the fusion of two heredities — Weston LaBarre
growth potential
human potential
industrial potential
leadership potential
military potential
2. : any of various functions (as a scalar function so related to the vector that the vector is its gradient) from which the intensity or the velocity at any point in a field may be calculated ; specifically : electric potential
III. noun
: potential difference