Word Origin Atlas

Exact historical dictionary sense

Possible in Webster's 1913 dictionary

The 1913 record labels possible as adjective. Its source-bounded etymology and selected historical definition appear below.

WEBSTER 1913adjective
Possible

[F., fr. L. possibilis, fr. posse to be able, to have power; potis able, capable + esse to be. See Potent, Am, and cf. Host a landlord.]

Cross-verified historical sense
The source text may be outdated. The page preserves that historical boundary.
Cross-verified 1913 record
Headwordpossible
Part of speechadjective
Historical etymology[F., fr. L. possibilis, fr. posse to be able, to have power; potis able, capable + esse to be. See Potent, Am, and cf. Host a landlord.]
Selected historical definitionCapable of existing or occurring, or of being conceived or thought of; able to happen; capable of being done; not contrary to the nature of things; -- sometimes used to express extreme improbability; barely able to be, or to come to pass; as, possibly he is honest, as it is possible that Judas meant no wrong.
Signed record IDwebster1913-possible-adjective-4def24915d6f
Source locatorCIDE.P, paragraph 11892; Gutenberg eBook 666
Edition-scoped answerNot earliest-attestation proofNot modern consensus
Independent historical textProject Gutenberg section 666Signed structural record sourceGNU GCIDE 0.54 archive
Quick answer

In Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), "possible" is labeled adjective. Its etymology is recorded as: "[F., fr. L. possibilis, fr. posse to be able, to have power; potis able, capable + esse to be. See Potent, Am, and cf. Host a landlord.]" The selected historical definition says: "Capable of existing or occurring, or of being conceived or thought of; able to happen; capable of being done; not contrary to the nature of things; -- sometimes used to express extreme improbability; barely able to be, or to come to pass; as, possibly he is honest, as it is possible that Judas meant no wrong."

Project Gutenberg Webster 1913 plus signed GNU GCIDE 0.54 Exact cross-verified historical record reviewed 2026-09-05

What this answer proves

One named sense in one historical dictionary edition.

The answer reports the selected headword, part of speech, etymology, definition, and source locator as transcribed in the cross-verified 1913 record.

Evidence boundaryIt does not establish the earliest attestation or a complete borrowing chain.It does not claim current scholarly consensus or a modern dictionary definition.Historical dictionary text may be obsolete, incomplete, inaccurate, or offensive by modern standards.

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Webster 1913 exact recordnoun

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Webster 1913 exact recordverb

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Webster 1913 exact recordverb

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Webster 1913 exact recordnoun

Power

[OE. pouer, poer, OF. poeir, pooir, F. pouvoir, n. & v., fr. LL. potere, for L. posse, potesse, to be able, to have power. See Possible, Potent, and cf. Posse comitatus.]

Webster 1913 exact record

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