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No. Potential should really be used to describe the difference between the state of things, compared with what they are now and what they might be at some point in the future. For instance, you might have the potential to be an astronaut but you need the appropriate training first.

So, it is possible that you might be an astronaut, but not without the potential.

Even so, as with many words in the English language, there are subtle differences - nuances - between some that seem to have the same meaning, and in spite of how it should "really" be used, it is also commonly used and understood in the sense of possible. "There is a potential risk of bad weather" etc. Clearly this does not make it right but it is a good example of how words, by use and convention, take on different meanings. It is, after all, a living language.

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13y ago

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