generalist

American  

[jen-er-uh-list] / ˈdʒɛn ər ə lɪst /

noun

1. a person whose knowledge, aptitudes, and skills are applied to a field as a whole or to a variety of different fields (opposed to specialist).

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generalist British  

/ ˈdʒɛnərəlɪst, ˈdʒɛnrə- /

noun

1. 1. a person who is knowledgeable in many fields of study

   2. ( as modifier )

      a generalist profession

2. ecology an organism able to utilize many food sources and therefore able to flourish in many habitats Compare specialist

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Etymology

Origin of generalist

First recorded in 1605–15; general + -ist

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

generalist

In places such as Wyoming and Florida, M. trumani lived as a generalist predator in temperate grasslands.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 8, 2026

Great Comp is hosting a healthy mix of generalist and mobile species that are "flourishing"

From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026

And while investors in semiconductor and tech stocks are already familiar with how supply-and-demand imbalances should benefit Nvidia, generalist investors need “more convincing” on Nvidia’s position and the sustainability of AI spending, he said.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 17, 2026

Part of the struggle is convincing generalist LPs that early-stage life-sciences startups aren’t unduly risky, he said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2026

The challenge, as always, was to play the role of market generalist without also playing the role of fool at the poker table.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis