as in possibility
something that can develop or become actual
would like to see a colony on the moon as an actuality and not merely a potentiality
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Recent Examples of potentiality
In a striking parallel to the 1990s, epochal thinking about the potentialities of a high technology society has once again upended politics.
—
Jacob Bruggeman & Casey Eilbert / Made By History, TIME, 3 Mar. 2025
Practically, then, the translator reads with an eye to understanding the affordances offered by a text—to re-creating its potentialities, rather than merely offering a lexical equivalent.
—Max Norman, The New Yorker, 7 Dec. 2024
Meanwhile, parsing-of-totality depends on advancing sensing techniques to harness atoms’ deeper patterns and potentiality.
—Pravir Malik, Forbes, 4 Dec. 2024
If Vietnam damaged the credibility of experts, experts were no more inclined to value the democratic potentialities of the public.
—Daniel Bessner, Foreign Affairs, 5 Apr. 2017
See All Example Sentences for potentiality
Jacob Bruggeman & Casey Eilbert / Made By History, TIME, 3 Mar. 2025
Practically, then, the translator reads with an eye to understanding the affordances offered by a text—to re-creating its potentialities, rather than merely offering a lexical equivalent.
—Max Norman, The New Yorker, 7 Dec. 2024
Meanwhile, parsing-of-totality depends on advancing sensing techniques to harness atoms’ deeper patterns and potentiality.
—Pravir Malik, Forbes, 4 Dec. 2024
If Vietnam damaged the credibility of experts, experts were no more inclined to value the democratic potentialities of the public.
—Daniel Bessner, Foreign Affairs, 5 Apr. 2017
See All Example Sentences for potentiality
Recent Examples of Synonyms for potentiality
Noun
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From clothes to baby strollers, the possibilities can radically help to improve the logistics of intermodal travel.—
Ramsey Qubein,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
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When asked by Trump about the possibility of expanding the Everglades site, DeSantis demurred but said the state is looking into other facilities in different areas.—
Rachel Treisman,
NPR,
1 July 2025
Noun
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Without a major change in the Iranian government, there remains a significant potential for future threats to oil supplies from the various parties involved.—
Michael Lynch,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
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European shares surged in the first half of the year, massively outperforming stocks on Wall Street — but market watchers are divided on the potential for the trend to continue.—
Lim Hui Jie,
CNBC,
1 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Potentiality.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/potentiality. Accessed 10 Jul. 2025.
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