possible
/ˈpɑ.sə.bəl/
Word Rarity
Common
Frequency: Zipf frequency 5.36 in modern English
12
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Able but not certain to happen; neither inevitable nor impossible.
adj
Being considered, e.g. for a position.
adj
noun
A particular event that may happen.
Example Sentences
- "Rain tomorrow is possible, but I wouldn't bet on it."
- "It's not just possible, it's probable that there will be rain tomorrow."
- "The humor of my proposition appealed more strongly to Miss Trevor than I had looked for, and from that time forward she became her old self again;[…]. Now she had come to look upon the matter in its true proportions, and her anticipation of a possible chance of teaching him a lesson was a pleasure to behold."
- "In short, the Leninist-Stalinist version of socialism was a possible interpretation, though certainly not the only possible one, of Marx's doctrine."
- "It's possible for anyone to learn to play the bagpipes."
- "And success in minor degree, in the sense in which he uses the term "success," is only somewhat more possible than success in winning the White House chair."
Etymology
From Middle English possible, from Old French possible, from Latin possibilis (“possible”), from posse, possum (“to be able”); see power. Displaced Middle English acumendlic (“possible”), from Old English ācumendlīċ (“possible”). Compare also Old English mihtelīċ (“strong, capable, powerful, possible”), which was cognate with Old High German mahtlīh (“possible”) and Old Norse máttulígr (“mighty, possible”). Compare also Dutch mogelijk (“possible”) and German möglich (“possible”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *h₁es-, possible, possibilis
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈpɑ.sə.bəl/
- British English: /ˈpɒs.ə.bəl/
Usage
Inflected Forms
Derived Forms
Phrases
anything is possible
art of the possible
as much as possible
as quickly as possible
as soon as possible
humanly possible
if possible
possible world