potentially

adverb

po·​ten·​tial·​ly pə-ˈten(t)-sh(ə-)lē 

: in a potential or possible state or condition

—used to describe the possible results or effects of something

a potentially dangerous situation [=a situation that has the potential to be or become dangerous]

a potentially useful feature

By creating a personal home page, anyone can publish material that potentially can be read by millions of people worldwide.

—Peter H. Lewis

The phenomenon seemed significant for both the science of immunology and, potentially, for medicine.

—Daniel J. Kevles

Potentially adding to the cost of the bail-out is the prevailing FDIC notion that some banks are simply too big to fail.

—L. J. Davis

The result, they say, is that children are less compelled to play outside, potentially stunting emotional and physical development and exacerbating a nationwide epidemic of childhood obesity.

—Sumathi Reddy

Examples of potentially in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

And potentially in some of our societies, going back to superstition again. — Fiction Non Fiction, Literary Hub, 17 Sep. 2026

But Massie and other lawmakers cited the potentially politically awkward vote, which would impeach Hegseth over unauthorized military actions in Iran, as the reason. — Justin Papp, CNBC, 16 Sep. 2026

There are also synthetic versions that are considered potentially dangerous. — Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 16 Sep. 2026

Franklin-Murdock argued Tuesday that removing the videos could potentially harm Bourne’s ability to defend herself in a separate criminal case filed last week by Yolo prosecutors, the Enterprise reported. — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 16 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for potentially

• essentially
• circumferentially
• experientially
• confidentially
• exponentially
• inferentially