entelechy

Entelechy is a philosophical term referring to the realization of potential inherent in a thing. The word comes from Greek entelecheia (en- “in” + telos “end” + echein “to have”), and is usually translated as “complete actuality” or “the end proper to it.” In Aristotelian biology and metaphysics, the entelechy is the inner principle that gives form to matter and actualizes it as a living being. According to hylomorphism, each natural body is a compound of matter and form; the latter, once fully realized, is the entelechy. The entelechy of a living organism is closely associated with its soul, understood as the principle of life that actualizes the organism’s potential. Plants are said to have a plant-like entelechy, animals a more developed one, and humans a rational entelechy.

Entelechy is distinct from energeia, which denotes activity or being-at-work, and from telos, the end or purpose of a process. The entelechy can be thought of as the realized end contained within the thing itself.

In later philosophy, the term was discussed by medieval and early modern thinkers within the framework of teleology and vitalism. With the advent of modern science, entelechy became largely historical, used mainly in discussions of teleology, the philosophy of life, or as a metaphor for an inner guiding principle in organisms, organizations, or processes.