Library / English Dictionary

GENERALISE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Become systemic and spread throughout the body

Example:

this kind of infection generalizes throughout the immune system

Synonyms:

generalise; generalize

Classified under:

Verbs of grooming, dressing and bodily care

Hypernyms (to "generalise" is one way to...):

distribute; spread (distribute or disperse widely)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Something is ----ing PP

Sense 2

Meaning:

Cater to popular taste to make popular and present to the general public; bring into general or common use

Example:

Relativity Theory was vulgarized by these authors

Synonyms:

generalise; generalize; popularise; popularize; vulgarise; vulgarize

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "generalise" is one way to...):

broadcast; circularise; circularize; circulate; diffuse; disperse; disseminate; distribute; pass around; propagate; spread (cause to become widely known)

Verb group:

popularise; popularize (make understandable to the general public)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 3

Meaning:

Draw from specific cases for more general cases

Synonyms:

extrapolate; generalise; generalize; infer

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "generalise" is one way to...):

conclude; reason; reason out (decide by reasoning; draw or come to a conclusion)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "generalise"):

overgeneralise; overgeneralize (draw too general a conclusion)

universalise; universalize (make universal)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Derivation:

generalisation ((psychology) transfer of a response learned to one stimulus to a similar stimulus)

generalisation (the process of formulating general concepts by abstracting common properties of instances)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Speak or write in generalities

Synonyms:

generalise; generalize

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "generalise" is one way to...):

mouth; speak; talk; utter; verbalise; verbalize (express in speech)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s

Sentence example:

Sam and Sue generalise

Derivation:

generalisation (an idea or conclusion having general application)

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