potentiality

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potentiality

philosophy

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July 1, 2026

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In philosophy, potentiality refers to something that has the capacity to develop or become actual. It represents a state of possibility, as opposed to actuality or reality.1234

Aristotle's philosophy extensively discusses potentiality, particularly in relation to motion. He defined motion as the actualization of a potentiality that is still in the process of being actualized. For instance, a body moving from point A to point B is in motion because it is actualizing its potential to be at B, but it is not yet fully there.5

Possibility, a related concept, implies the absence of contradiction and can be understood in relation to necessity and contingency. Philosophers like Immanuel Kant suggested that for something to be empirically possible, it must conform to the conditions of actual experience. David Lewis proposed the existence of possible but nonactual worlds, which, along with the actual world, constitute the realm of "possible worlds".6

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ethics
Aristotle
…things, Aristotle held, have inherent potentialities, which it is their nature to develop. This is the form of life properly suited to them and constitutes their goal. What, however, is the potentiality of human beings? For Aristotle this question turns out to be equivalent to asking what is distinctive about…
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…things, Aristotle held, have inherent potentialities, which it is their nature to develop. This is the form of life properly suited to them and constitutes their goal. What, however, is the potentiality of human beings? For Aristotle this question turns out to be equivalent to asking what is distinctive about…
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learning theory
…permanent change in a behavioral potentiality that occurs as a result of reinforced practice. Although the definition is useful, it still leaves problems.
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…permanent change in a behavioral potentiality that occurs as a result of reinforced practice. Although the definition is useful, it still leaves problems.
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form
Philosophical concepts
Matter is the potential factor, form the actualizing factor. (Aristotle further posited the existence of a prime mover, or unmoved mover, i.e., pure form separate from matter, eternal and immutable.)
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Matter is the potential factor, form the actualizing factor. (Aristotle further posited the existence of a prime mover, or unmoved mover, i.e., pure form separate from matter, eternal and immutable.)
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metaphysics
Aristotelianism
are substance, form and matter, potentiality and actuality, and cause (see Aristotle: Physics and metaphysics). Whatever happens involves some substance or substances; unless there were substances, in the sense of concrete existents, nothing whatsoever could be real. Substances, however, are not, as the name might suggest, mere parcels of matter;…
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are substance, form and matter, potentiality and actuality, and cause (see Aristotle: Physics and metaphysics). Whatever happens involves some substance or substances; unless there were substances, in the sense of concrete existents, nothing whatsoever could be real. Substances, however, are not, as the name might suggest, mere parcels of matter;…
Read More