potentiality

Potentiality refers to the capacity of something to develop into a different state or to perform a possible action, as opposed to its current actual state. In classical philosophy, the distinction between potentiality and actuality was central to Aristotle’s account of change. For Aristotle, every thing has a potency to become otherwise and an act when that potency is realized. Potency can be inherent in the thing’s nature (intrinsic potential) or conditional on external factors (extrinsic potential). Actualization is the process by which potential is realized, often through a cause or agent, yielding a new state or form (entelechy).

Examples commonly cited include a seed, which has the potential to become a tree, and a block of marble with the potential to become a statue once sculpted. A student may have the potential to become a scientist under appropriate instruction and opportunity. In scholastic and later metaphysical discussions, potentiality is analyzed in relation to form, matter, causation, and the conditions required for change.

In modern usage, potentiality appears in various contexts. In science, potential energy describes a system’s capacity to perform work based on position, a different but related notion. In philosophy and logic, potentiality is linked to possibility, necessity, and the conditions under which states may come into being; debates address intrinsic versus extrinsic potential and the nature of change, realization, and freedom.