generalize

verb

gen·​er·​al·​ize ˈjen-rə-ˌlīz How to pronounce generalize (audio) ˈje-nə- How to pronounce generalize (audio)
generalized; generalizing

transitive verb

1
: to give a general form to
2
a
: to derive or induce (a general conception or principle) from particulars
b
: to draw a general conclusion from
3
: to give general applicability to
generalize a law
also : to make indefinite

intransitive verb

1
: to form generalizations
also : to make vague or indefinite statements
She's always generalizing about men.
2
: to spread or extend throughout the body
generalizability noun
generalizable adjective
generalizer noun

Examples of generalize in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The researchers could generalize this beyond their study sites in Alaska, showing that boreal trees growing elsewhere around the Arctic—birch, pine, larch, and other kinds of spruce—are moving northward where nearby sea ice is declining. Matt Simon, WIRED, 4 Mar. 2024 Lenz’s impulse to generalize is so strong that at times her work whiffs of self-help. Lily Meyer, The Atlantic, 28 Feb. 2024 Future research will focus on testing how well these AI systems can generalize to analyzing data from other locations, Chen says. IEEE Spectrum, 23 Nov. 2023 But Arora and Goyal wanted to go beyond theory and test their claim that LLMs get better at combining more skills, and thus at generalizing, as their size and training data increase. Quanta Magazine, 22 Jan. 2024 To be successful, a model needs to replicate the known while generalizing into the unknown. Dan Rockmore, The New Yorker, 15 Jan. 2024 Stereotyping is a natural psychological process that causes people to generalize the actions of an individual to their group. TIME, 2 Jan. 2024 Most notably, the authors acknowledge that their sample consisted exclusively of dogs from Hungary kept as pets, and thus their results might not generalize to stray dogs, for example, or dogs from other geographical regions and cultures. Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 21 Dec. 2023 In the example above, x = 7. This principle can be generalized. Manon Bischoff, Scientific American, 16 Nov. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'generalize.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

general entry 1 + -ize

First Known Use

1710, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of generalize was in 1710

Dictionary Entries Near generalize

Cite this Entry

“Generalize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/generalize. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

generalize

verb
gen·​er·​al·​ize ˈjen-(ə-)rə-ˌlīz How to pronounce generalize (audio)
generalized; generalizing
: to put in the form of a general rule : draw or state a general conclusion from a number of items or instances

Medical Definition

generalize

intransitive verb
gen·​er·​al·​ize
variants or British generalise
generalized or British generalised; generalizing or British generalising
: to spread or extend through all of a body part or region or through most of the entire body

More from Merriam-Webster on generalize

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