English Reference
Verb

generalize

v.
B2 Upper Intermediate US /ˈdʒɛnɝəˌɫaɪz/ gen·er·al·ize UK spelling generalise, generalizes, generalizing

v.to make a general statement or rule based on specific examples. You use this when you want to say that something is true for a whole group because it is true for some members.

v.to form a general statement or conclusion from specific instances. Often used in academic contexts to describe the process of identifying patterns across data sets.


SIMPLE

The researcher tried to generalize her findings to the whole population.

CONTEXTUAL

It is difficult to generalize about the behavior of all teenagers based on a small sample of students.

COMPLEX

While the study provides valuable insights into urban migration, the authors caution against generalizing these results to rural areas where economic conditions differ significantly.

Future research is needed to see if these findings generalize to children of responders who developed other health conditions.

Phys.org· 1 Sept 2026

AI has an even harder time generalizing the complex tensions between faith and unbelief, or good and evil, that animate these stories.

The Conversation· 21 Aug 2026

From general + -ize.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Level B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency Occasional
Updated