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Synonyms

generalize

American  
[jen-er-uh-lahyz] / ˈdʒɛn ər əˌlaɪz /
especially British, generalise

verb (used with object)

generalized, generalizing
  1. to infer (a general principle, trend, etc.) from particular facts, statistics, or the like.

  2. to infer or form (a general principle, opinion, conclusion, etc.) from only a few facts, examples, or the like.

  3. to give a general rather than a specific or special character or form to.

  4. to make general; bring into general use or knowledge.


verb (used without object)

generalized, generalizing
  1. to form general principles, opinions, etc.

  2. to deal, think, or speak in generalities.

  3. to make general inferences.

generalize British  
/ ˈdʒɛnrəˌlaɪz /

verb

  1. to form (general principles or conclusions) from (detailed facts, experience, etc); infer

  2. (intr) to think or speak in generalities, esp in a prejudiced way

  3. (tr; usually passive) to cause to become widely used or known

  4. (intr)

    1. to spread throughout the body

    2. to change from a localized infection or condition to a systemic one

      generalized infection

"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

Other Word Forms

  • generalizable adjective
  • generalizer noun
  • nongeneralized adjective
  • ungeneralized adjective
  • ungeneralizing adjective

Etymology

Origin of generalize

First recorded in 1745–55; general + -ize

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.

"In our article, we show that the generalized dipole model describes the existing data more accurately than previous dipole models and, moreover, works well in a wider range of proton collision energies," Prof. Kutak says.

From Science Daily

“These specialized architectures can be excellent in narrow slices of inference, but they don’t generalize well to the kind of workloads the frontier is converging on.”

From The Wall Street Journal

The results, it says, “cannot be generalized to the overall enrollment population.”

From Los Angeles Times

It’s a generalized disdain for almost anything generated by “artificial intelligence,” as though the involvement of AI at all renders the product suspect, even dangerous.

From Los Angeles Times

In generalized anxiety disorder, for instance, people may experience persistent worry about routine events and struggle to control their concerns.

From Science Daily