mögliche

Mögliche is the inflected form of the German adjective möglich, meaning capable of occurring or being true; in everyday language it describes something that could happen under certain conditions. The word is widely used in phrases like eine mögliche Lösung (a possible solution) or mögliche Ursachen (potential causes).

When capitalized as Mögliche, the term can function as a noun, referring to the realm or set of possibilities, or to a possible thing in a given context. The more common noun for the general notion of possibility is Möglichkeit, but Mögliche appears in some uses, especially in philosophical or literary style, to emphasize the concrete instances of what could be.

Usage and grammar: möglich is declined like a typical strong adjective. Examples include eine mögliche Gefahr, eine mögliche Gefahr darstellen, or Es ist möglich (It is possible). When used attributively before a feminine or plural noun, it becomes eine mögliche Lösung or mögliche Ergebnisse. As a noun, Mögliche is less frequent than Möglichkeit but may appear in phrases such as Das Mögliche versus Das Notwendige to denote contrast between what could be and what must be.

Etymology and related terms: möglich derives from the German root mag- or können, meaning to be able, with the derivational suffix -lich to form adjectives meaning "able-to-be." The related noun Möglichkeit means "possibility," while the adverb möglicherweise means "possibly" and the adjective mögliche is connected in meaning to these terms. In philosophy and modal logic, das Mögliche is used in discussions of possibility, often alongside the concept of die mögliche Welt (the possible world).

See also: Möglichkeit, Möglichkeitstheorie, möglicherweise, vielleicht, eventuell.