general strike

American

noun

a mass strike in all or many trades and industries in a section or in all parts of a country.

general strike British

noun

a strike by all or most of the workers of a country, province, city, etc, esp ( caps. ) such a strike that took place in Britain in 1926

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

general strike Cultural

A strike of all of the workers in a nation or area. General strikes are usually brief and designed to show the unity of the working class.

Etymology

Origin of general strike

An Americanism dating back to 1800–10

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Last month, they called for a general strike in support of the demonstrations.

From Barron's • Feb. 27, 2026

Silver Lake sports bar Untamed Spirits and Canyon Coffee in Echo Park said on social media that they will be closed Friday for the general strike.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 29, 2026

At the end of that year a general strike brought the country to a halt.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 10, 2026

Teachers, medical staff and rubbish collectors will all be joining the rolling industrial action which is set to end in a general strike on Wednesday.

From BBC • Nov. 24, 2025

The mass action campaign culminated in a general strike on August 3 and 4 in support of the ANC’s negotiation demands and in protest against state-supported violence.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023