generate
Americanverb (used with object)
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generates,
present (3rd person singular)
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generated,
past participle, past
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generating
present participle
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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)
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generates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
generated,
past participle, past
-
generating
present participle
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:
A similar installation to promote Modern Warfare 4 has been built in downtown LA - but it's far from the only extravagant promotional attempt to generate buzz around the game.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
On the flip side, there have been signs of “short covering” in the $32 trillion Treasury market, which can generate strong buying, he said.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 22, 2026
It used to generate more than half of Kering's revenue but that fell to 40 percent in 2025.
From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026
A strong El Niño in 2023-24 didn’t generate much food inflation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026
Most important, the simplest way to generate cozy corners was to have the subunits helically arranged.
From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson
The company has produced more than 250 specials and estimates it currently generates just under $10 million annually in gross profits.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026
Here is how it works: The central bank takes the policy-rate path implied by financial-market prices for the years of the forecast and generates outcomes for growth, employment and inflation.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
The recycled materials industry supports more than 600,000 U.S. jobs and generates $184 billion in economic activity annually.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
At the cathode, oxygen reduction generates reactive oxygen species that initiate the oxygen-transfer reaction.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 12, 2026
One of the most encouraging developments has come out of Australia, where renewable energy now generates enough power to run 70 percent of Australian homes.
From "1919 The Year That Changed America" by Martin W. Sandler
Macron said the unnamed leaders had been influenced by fake videos generated by AI about the riots.
From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2026
Citing a draft prospectus, the Wall Street Journal reported Anthropic generated $16.3 billion of revenue, though also a net loss of more than $80 billion.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 21, 2026
Jessica Lech, the Florida real-estate office manager, was optimistic when her TikTok post offering baked goods and showing off her beach setup generated over 800 comments.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026
They are typically generated when a sudden disturbance, such as an earthquake, underwater landslide, or asteroid impact, rapidly displaces the water above it.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 21, 2026
The harder you stomped on the plastic bottle, the more thrust you generated, and the farther the foam-tipped rocket flew.
From "Shine!" by J.J. and Chris Grabenstein
Their attention centered on neural progenitor cells, the cells responsible for generating neurons during brain development.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 22, 2026
For most of the war, Tehran maintained a crucial economic lifeline: dozens of tankers holding millions of barrels of crude sitting safely in Asian waters, quietly supplying Chinese refineries and generating billions in cash.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026
The UK is one of the world's leading fintech hubs, the CMA said, generating more than £214 billion in turnover and supporting more than 360,000 jobs.
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026
But nearly five years of war has seen that dramatically slashed, although the current generating capacity remains unclear.
From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026
Watson and Crick proposed that each DNA strand was used to generate a copy of itself—thereby generating two double helices from the original double helix.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
