power scaling

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Meaning · English

The practice of assessing the physical power and abilities of a fictional character through a comparison with another character.

Register: slang

Where it’s used: Used American English

Examples

Let’s talk about the practice of “powerscaling” for a second — a common thought experiment that elevates itself to annoyance and is perhaps symptomatic of a greater evil. […] Powerscaling ignores every way characters can interact with each other to boil it down to physical violence[.]

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “power scaling” mean?

The practice of assessing the physical power and abilities of a fictional character through a comparison with another character.

Is “power scaling” formal or informal?

power scaling is generally slang.