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general

/ˈd͡ʒɛn.(ə.)ɹəl/noun, verb, adjective3 syllables

General means: applying to all or most members of a category or group.

Synonyms for general36

noun, as in a general officer of the highest rank

full general

noun, as in the head of a religious order or congregation

superior general

adjective, as in applying to all or most members of a category or group

broad, unspecific, general-purpose, all-purpose, generic, gross, overall, pandemic, universal, widespread, comprehensive, imprecise, indiscriminate, unspecialized, unspecialised

adjective, as in of worldwide scope or applicability

cosmopolitan, ecumenical, oecumenical, universal, worldwide, world-wide, comprehensive

adjective, as in not specialized or limited to one class of things

undiversified

adjective, as in prevailing among and common to the general public

common

adjective, as in affecting the entire body

systemic

adjective, as in somewhat indefinite

imprecise

also used for general

catholic, nonsingular, nonspecific, typical, usual, average, basic, bog-standard, common as bums, common as dirt, common as muck

Includes material from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Opposites of general

specific, local, particular

What does general mean?10

adjective

1

applying to all or most members of a category or group“the general public”

2

of worldwide scope or applicability“an issue of cosmopolitan import”

3

not specialized or limited to one class of things“general studies”

4

prevailing among and common to the general public“the general discontent”

5

affecting the entire body“a general anesthetic”

6

somewhat indefinite“bearing a general resemblance to the original”

noun

1

a general officer of the highest rank

2

the head of a religious order or congregation

3

a fact about the whole (as opposed to particular)“he discussed the general but neglected the particular”

verb

1

command as a general“We are generaled by an incompetent!”

Definitions from the Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

General in a sentence

  • In general, little is known about nonlinear second order differential equations.Zifre
  • As soon as he graduated, he went to work in his father's general store.CK
  • In general, people were against the consumption tax.slyfin
  • However, the general crime number has not decreased though the juvenile delinquency stands out.unknown
  • In general, the relationship between parents and children is essentially based on teaching.AlanF_US
  • As a general rule, it's simple to criticize, but difficult to produce alternative suggestions.blay_paul
  • In general, little girls are fond of dolls.CS
  • In general, women tend to live ten years longer than men.Anon

Sentences from Tatoeba, CC BY 2.0 FR, credited to their authors.

Forms of general

as a noun

plural
generals

as a verb

third-person singular
generals
present participle
generaling
past participle
generaled
past tense
generaled