haʊˈɛvɚ, wiː hɐvnˌɑːt jˈɛt dᵻfˈaɪnd pətˈɛnʃəl ɔːɹ pətˈɛnʃəl ˈɛnɚdʒi, bɪkˈʌz ðə kˈɑːnvɜːs ʌvðə ɡɹˈeɪdiənt θˈiəɹəm ɪz ɹᵻkwˈaɪɚd tə pɹˈuːv ðæt ðiːz ɑːɹ wˈɛldᵻfˈaɪnd, dˈɪfɚɹˌɛnʃɪəbəl fˈʌŋkʃənz ænd ðæt ðiːz fˈɔːɹmjʊləz hˈoʊld sˈiː bᵻlˈoʊ.
However, we have not yet defined potential or potential energy, because the converse of the gradient theorem is required to prove that these are well-defined, differentiable functions and that these formulas hold (see below).