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:
For now, retail partners generate most of On Holding’s business, accounting for nearly 58% of overall sales in the first half of the year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
Baker's yeast can now generate vanilla flavoring from plant biomass.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 13, 2026
Industry figures have suggested comments about the perils and power of AI may be designed to generate hype.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
The operation used Claude to generate reports, advocacy materials, social media content and testimony on Sudan.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
The success of a scientific research programme thus depends not on its ability to generate new knowledge but on its ability to mobilize the support of a community.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
The sport has long grappled with the issue of retaining the attention and excitement it generates at the Olympics throughout those four-year cycles.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
Lee Chang-dong’s superb “Possible Love,” for instance, generates its explosively intimate finale by first investing us in the saga of strikers reeling from a brutal government crackdown.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
Football is deeply ingrained in American culture, and team owners have little incentive to change a product that generates more than $23 billion in revenue annually.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
Her affect can be off-putting, but that alone can’t explain the extreme negative reactions she generates.
From Salon ● Sep. 8, 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
The business generated sales of about $9.3 billion last year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
The fund follows William's decision to stop personally benefiting from the £1.5m annual rent generated by Dartmoor Prison, with the funding redirected into the local community.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
The discussions generated by Coxon’s posts will mostly impact regulation on further development, Ram Bala, an associate professor of AI and analytics at Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business, told MarketWatch.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026
"Storm surf generated by Hurricane Marie and runoff from a storm drain outfall eroded a large portion of the festival site," said a statement from the city of Santa Monica.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
The initial confirmation of Walter's conviction on appeal had generated significant press in the community, and most people now felt that Walter's guilt was a settled matter.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
Former regional lawmaker Heriberto Labrador said at a public event that the thermal power plant in Tachira was generating 70 megawatts of electricity -- sufficient to cover regional demand.
From Barron's ● Sep. 12, 2026
Most of the vehicles currently on the road, even those generating revenue, are still basically prototypes, he added.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026
By generating light signals efficiently inside the chip, they could allow information to move with very little energy loss, potentially making future devices faster, cooler, and more energy efficient.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026
Fortum said Google's commitment would support an investment programme aimed at extending the life of the nuclear station and increasing its generating capacity.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
Then I began to scan the newsfeeds, intending to check out the media frenzy my return to first place was generating.
From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline
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.
