generate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to bring into existence; cause to be; produce.
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to create by a vital or natural process.
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to create and distribute vitally and profusely.
He generates ideas that we all should consider.
A good diplomat generates good will.
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to reproduce; procreate.
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to produce by a chemical process.
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Mathematics.
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to trace (a figure) by the motion of a point, straight line, or curve.
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to act as base for all the elements of a given set.
The number 2 generates the set 2, 4, 8, 16.
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Linguistics. to produce or specify (a grammatical sentence or other construction or set of constructions) by the application of a rule or set of rules in a generative grammar.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to produce or bring into being; create
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(also intr) to produce (electricity), esp in a power station
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to produce (a substance) by a chemical process
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maths linguistics to provide a precise criterion or specification for membership in (a set)
these rules will generate all the noun phrases in English
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geometry to trace or form by moving a point, line, or plane in a specific way
circular motion of a line generates a cylinder
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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pregenerateverb (used with object)
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intergeneratingadjective
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nongeneratingadjective
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ungeneratedadjective
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ungeneratingadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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generatesimple
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generatessimple
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have generatedperfect
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has generatedperfect
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am generatingprogressive
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are generatingprogressive
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is generatingprogressive
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have been generatingperfect progressive
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has been generatingperfect progressive
Past
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generatedsimple
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had generatedperfect
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was generatingprogressive
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were generatingprogressive
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had been generatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of generate
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin generātus “begotten, produced,” past participle of generāre “to beget”; see genus
Explanation
Generate means produce or create. A good stock pick might generate cash, and a good idea might generate the basis for an Oscar-winning film. Generate and the closely related word generation both come from the Latin word genus, which means "stock or race." Its root, in turn, is the Proto-Indo-European gen-, "to produce, give birth, or beget." Let's say you have two siblings. In that case, your parents' marriage has generated three children. In a hydroelectric power plant, water generates power. And you can get a paper route or babysit if you're looking to generate a little income.
Vocabulary lists containing generate
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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.
See Examples For:
Meanwhile, more and more is burned at home to generate electricity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
Benn said he wished Sir Chris "all the very best in working with the executive to protect stability, continuing to generate growth and investment and in taking forward the Troubles Bill".
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
They might subside for a little bit, but another system — Tropical Storm Fausto — could generate “another set of elevated swell at our beaches later this week into the weekend.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
That could certainly generate some colorful language at a bar.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 19, 2026
Second, food production may be organized so as to generate stored food surpluses, which permit economic specialization and social stratification.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
This means that even if gas only generates 1% of overall electricity at a given time it can often set the overall wholesale price which gets paid to every type of generator.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
Impact glass forms when a collision generates enough heat to melt rock.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 18, 2026
“Yes, Argentina generates a lot of anger, but at the end of the day, they score goals and win games.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
If Nasdaq generates sufficiently high volumes then there is more incentive to hold the ADRs.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 15, 2026
You cannot “see” this cube nor feel its edges—but it shares the one property that all physical objects must possess: it generates shadows.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
In 2025, Entresto alone generated annual sales of $7.7 billion, even though its sales had already fallen sharply in the fourth quarter after its patent expired in the United States in July of that year.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
"I think live shopping gives people that connection and interaction that we're all craving...We actually generated over £100,000 revenue in one 12 hour TikTok live," says Daisy, now 27.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
Its opening weekend generated $264.1 million worldwide, the largest global debut ever for the director.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
I actively manage our investments and have generated strong returns over the years.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
But when Harold Washington died, most of the energy he’d generated did, too.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
It takes on average about six weeks to begin generating revenue from those assets, and the lag results in a hit to earnings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
The price energy suppliers pay for electricity is set by a bidding process with each generating company saying what it would be willing to accept to produce one unit of electricity.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
"In hydrodynamic cavitation, we pass PFAS-enriched water through a constriction, generating small vapor bubbles," explains Dr. Sebastian Reinecke, head of the Department of Water and Environmental Technologies at HZDR.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 20, 2026
Devotees often bear offerings ranging from cash and gold to silver ornaments, generating a steady stream of donations.
From Barron's ● Jul. 19, 2026
The engine was operating at full power on diesel fuel, and, Zeitoun realized in an instant, was generating all the electricity used for the station and the makeshift jail.
From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
