generic

[juh-ner-ik]

adjective

1. of, applicable to, or referring to all the members of a genus, class, group, or kind; not specific; general.

   Synonyms: universal, common
   Antonyms: specific

2. of, relating to, or noting a genus especially in biology.

3. (of a word) applicable or referring to both men and women.

   a generic pronoun.

4. not protected by trademark registration.

   “Cola” and “shuttle” are generic terms.

   Synonyms: unbranded

5. having no distinguishing characteristics; commonplace.

   There are a lot of generic interviews, and the lack of unique perspective you get from interviewers is somewhat shocking.

noun

1. something that is generic.

2. any product, as a type of food, drug, or cosmetic commonly marketed under a brand name, that is sold in a package without a brand.

3. a wine made from two or more varieties of grapes, with no one grape constituting more than half the product (varietal ).

generic

/ dʒɪˈnɛrɪk /

adjective

1. applicable or referring to a whole class or group; general

2. biology of, relating to, or belonging to a genus

   the generic name

3. denoting the nonproprietary name of a drug, food product, etc

noun

1. a drug, food product, etc that does not have a trademark

Other Word Forms

• generically adverb
• genericalness noun
• nongeneric adjective
• nongenerical adjective
• nongenerically adverb
• pseudogeneric adjective
• pseudogenerical adjective
• pseudogenerically adverb
• supergeneric adjective
• supergenerically adverb
• ungeneric adjective
• ungenerical adjective
• ungenerically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of generic¹

First recorded in 1670–80; from Latin gener- ( gender ¹ ) + -ic

Word History and Origins

Origin of generic¹

C17: from French; see _genus

Example Sentences

Kennedy said in a post on X Thursday the FDA “only approved a second generic mifepristone tablet because federal law requires approval when an application proves the generic is identical to the brand-name drug.”

Read more on Wall Street Journal

A spokesman for the Commerce Department, which is handling the tariff investigation, similarly said that the 232 investigation wouldn’t result in tariffs on generics.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

More Americans are turning to generic brands and stretching out perishable goods as economic concerns creep up the income ladder, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic said.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

Half the business is generic drugs, and the other half is branded biotechs.

Read more on Barron's

“TiVoing,” meaning to record a show for later viewing, even became one of those generic gerunds, like “Xeroxing” or “Googling.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• universal