Dictionary entry details
• POSSIBILITY (noun)
Meaning:
A future prospect or potential
Classified under:
Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents
Context example:
this room has great possibilities
Hypernyms ("possibility" is a kind of...):
expectation; outlook; prospect (belief about (or mental picture of) the future)
Meaning:
Capability of existing or happening or being true
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Synonyms:
possibleness; possibility
Context example:
there is a possibility that his sense of smell has been impaired
Hypernyms ("possibility" is a kind of...):
being; beingness; existence (the state or fact of existing)
Attribute:
possible (capable of happening or existing)
impossible (not capable of occurring or being accomplished or dealt with)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "possibility"):
conceivability; conceivableness (the state of being conceivable)
achievability; attainability; attainableness (the state of being achievable)
potency; potential; potentiality (the inherent capacity for coming into being)
chance; opportunity (a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances)
Antonym:
impossibility (incapability of existing or occurring)
Meaning:
A tentative theory about the natural world; a concept that is not yet verified but that if true would explain certain facts or phenomena
Classified under:
Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents
Synonyms:
hypothesis; theory; possibility
Context examples:
a scientific hypothesis that survives experimental testing becomes a scientific theory / he proposed a fresh theory of alkalis that later was accepted in chemical practices
Hypernyms ("possibility" is a kind of...):
concept; conception; construct (an abstract or general idea inferred or derived from specific instances)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "possibility"):
hypothetical (a hypothetical possibility, circumstance, statement, proposal, situation, etc.)
framework; model; theoretical account (a hypothetical description of a complex entity or process)
conjecture; speculation (a hypothesis that has been formed by speculating or conjecturing (usually with little hard evidence))
assumption; supposal; supposition (a hypothesis that is taken for granted)
Holonyms ("possibility" is a part of...):
theory (a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world; an organized system of accepted knowledge that applies in a variety of circumstances to explain a specific set of phenomena)
Meaning:
A possible alternative
Classified under:
Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents
Synonyms:
possible action; possibility; opening
Context example:
bankruptcy is always a possibility
Hypernyms ("possibility" is a kind of...):
alternative; choice; option (one of a number of things from which only one can be chosen)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "possibility"):
possible (something that can be done)
