Definition of general General

/ʤɛˈnɚʌl/ - [jenerul] - gen•er•al

We found 40 definitions of general from 8 different sources.

What does general mean?

WordNet

Noun Plural: generals
general - a general officer of the highest rank
		full general
		general officer officers in the Army or Air Force or Marines above the rank of colonel
		armed forces, armed services, military, military machine, war machine the military forces of a nation; "their military is the largest in the region"; "the military machine is the same one we faced in 1991 but now it is weaker"
		g. l. von blucher, gebhard leberecht von blucher, von blucher, blucher a high shoe with laces over the tongue
general - a fact about the whole (as opposed to particular); "he discussed the general but neglected the particular"
		specific, particular a medicine that has a mitigating effect on a specific disease; "quinine is a specific for malaria"
		fact a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred; "first you must collect all the facts of the case"
general - the head of a religious order or congregation
		superior general
		top dog, chief, head a single domestic animal; "200 head of cattle"
Verb generals, generalling, generalled
general - command as a general; "We are generaled by an incompetent!"
		command make someone do something
Adjective
general - applying to all or most members of a category or group; "the general public"; "general assistance"; "a general rule"; "in general terms"; "comprehensible to the general reader"
		specific stated explicitly or in detail; "needed a specific amount"
		comprehensive including all or everything; "comprehensive coverage"; "a comprehensive history of the revolution"; "a comprehensive survey"; "a comprehensive education"
		imprecise not precise; "imprecise astronomical observations"; "the terms he used were imprecise and emotional"
		indiscriminate not marked by fine distinctions; "indiscriminate reading habits"; "an indiscriminate mixture of colors and styles"
		unspecialised, unspecialized not specialized or modified for a particular purpose or function
		generality the quality of being general or widespread or having general applicability
		unspecific, broad showing or characterized by broad-mindedness; "a broad political stance"; "generous and broad sympathies"; "a liberal newspaper"; "tolerant of his opponent's opinions"
		all-purpose, general-purpose not limited in use or function
		generic applicable to an entire class or group; "is there a generic Asian mind?"
		gross repellently fat; "a bald porcine old man"
		overall involving only main features; "the overall pattern of his life"
		pandemic existing everywhere; "pandemic fear of nuclear war"
		universal adapted to various purposes, sizes, forms, operations; "universal wrench", "universal chuck"; "universal screwdriver"
general - affecting the entire body; "a general anesthetic"; "general symptoms"
		local relating to or applicable to or concerned with the administration of a city or town or district rather than a larger area; "local taxes"; "local authorities"
		medical specialty, medicine the learned profession that is mastered by graduate training in a medical school and that is devoted to preventing or alleviating or curing diseases and injuries; "he studied medicine at Harvard"
general - not specialized or limited to one class of things; "general studies"; "general knowledge"
		undiversified not diversified
general - prevailing among and common to the general public; "the general discontent"
general - somewhat indefinite; "bearing a general resemblance to the original"; "a general description of the merchandise"
general - of worldwide scope or applicability; "an issue of cosmopolitan import"; "the shrewdest political and ecumenical comment of our time"- Christopher Morley; "universal experience"
		cosmopolitan, ecumenical, oecumenical, universal, worldwide, world-wide
		comprehensive including all or everything; "comprehensive coverage"; "a comprehensive history of the revolution"; "a comprehensive survey"; "a comprehensive education"

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Wiktionary

general (Noun)
Commander of an army.
general (Noun)
A rank in the army and air force that is higher than colonel or brigadier, and is usually the highest rank group next to commander in chief , except in countries that use the rank of field marshal .
general (Noun)
A commissioned rank in the British Army and Royal Marines , above lieutenant general and below field marshal .
general (Noun)
A commissioned general officer in the United States Army , United States Marine Marine Corps , or United States Air Air Force superior to a lieutenant general . A general is equal in rank or grade to a four star admiral. In the US Army, a general is junior to a general of the army . In the US Marine Corps, a general is the highest rank of commissioned officer. In the US Air Force, a general is junior to a general of the air force .
general (Noun)
Short for general anaesthetic or general anaesthesia .
general (Adjective)
Applied to a person as a postmodifier or a normal preceding adjective to indicate supreme rank, in civil or military titles, and later in other terms; pre-eminent.
general (Adjective)
Prevalent or widespread among a given class or area; common, usual.
general (Adjective)
Not limited in use or application; applicable to the whole or every member of a class or category.
general (Adjective)
Giving or consisting of only the most important aspects of something, ignoring minor details; indefinite.
general (Adjective)
Not limited to a specific class; miscellaneous, concerned with all branches of a given subject or area.

Webster DictionaryWebster's Unabridged Dictionary 📘

general (a.)
Relating to a genus or kind; pertaining to a whole class or order; as, a general law of animal or vegetable economy.
general (a.)
Comprehending many species or individuals; not special or particular; including all particulars; as, a general inference or conclusion.
general (a.)
Not restrained or limited to a precise import; not specific; vague; indefinite; lax in signification; as, a loose and general expression.
general (a.)
Common to many, or the greatest number; widely spread; prevalent; extensive, though not universal; as, a general opinion; a general custom.
general (a.)
Having a relation to all; common to the whole; as, Adam, our general sire.
general (a.)
As a whole; in gross; for the most part.
general (a.)
Usual; common, on most occasions; as, his general habit or method.
general (a.)
The whole; the total; that which comprehends or relates to all, or the chief part; -- opposed to particular.
general (a.)
One of the chief military officers of a government or country; the commander of an army, of a body of men not less than a brigade. In European armies, the highest military rank next below field marshal.
general (a.)
The roll of the drum which calls the troops together; as, to beat the general.
general (a.)
The chief of an order of monks, or of all the houses or congregations under the same rule.
general (a.)
The public; the people; the vulgar.

OmegaWiki DictionaryOmegaWiki Dictionary Ω

general
Not specific or particular.
general
Rank in the army and air force that is higher than colonel or brigadier, and is usually the highest rank group next to commander in chief, except in countries that use the rank of field marshal.
general
Applicable to an entire class or group.

Chambers DictionaryChamber's 20th Century Dictionary 📕

general
jen′ėr-al, adj. relating to a genus or whole class: including many species: not special: not restricted: common: prevalent: public: loose: vague.—n. a class embracing many species: an officer who is head over a whole department: a military officer who commands a body of men not less than a brigade (often general officer): the chief commander of an army in service: (R.C. Church) the head of a religious order, responsible only to the Pope: (Shak.) the public, the vulgar.—n. General′ē, esp. in pl. Generalia, general principles.—adj. Generalī′sable.—n. Generalisā′tion.—v.t. Generalīse′, to include under a general term: to infer (the nature of a class) from one or a few instances.—v.i. to reason inductively.—n. General′ity.—advs. Gen′erally, Gen′eral (obs.), in a general or collective manner or sense: in most cases: upon the whole.—n. Gen′eralship, the position of a military commander: military tactics.—General Assembly (see Assembly); General Epistle, one addressed to the whole Church (same as Catholic Epistle); General practitioner, a physician who devotes himself to general practice rather than to special diseases; General principle, a principle to which there are no exceptions within its range of application; General servant, a servant whose duties are not special, but embrace domestic work of every kind.—In general, mostly, as a general rule. [O. Fr.,—L. generalis—genus.]

Sailor's Word-BookThe Sailor's Word-Book ⛵

general
The commander of an army: the military rank corresponding to the naval one of admiral. The title includes all officers above colonels, ascending with qualifying prefixes, as brigadier-general, major-general, lieutenant-general, to general, above which is nothing save the exceptional rank of field-marshal and of captain-general or commander-in-chief of the land forces of the United Kingdom.

Military DictionaryMilitary Dictionary and Gazetteer 💥

general
A term for the roll of the drum which calls the troops together. To “beat the general” is a phrase drawn from the French drum instructors, “Battre la Generale.”
general
The highest military title in the U. S. army, and the highest military title below that of field-marshal in European armies. A general ordinarily commands no body of men less than an army or corps d’armée.

Part of speech

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general, verb, present, 1st person singular of general (infinitive).
general, verb (infinitive).
general, noun, singular of generals.

Pronunciation

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Sign Language

general in sign language

Definition of general General

What does general mean?

WordNet

Noun

Verb

Adjective