generalizev.

Brit.

/ˈdʒɛn(ə)rəlʌɪz/,

/ˈdʒɛn(ə)rl̩ʌɪz/, U.S.

/ˈdʒɛn(ə)rəˌlaɪz/

Forms: late Middle English 1700s– generalize, 1700s– generalise.

Origin: Formed within English, by derivation; originally modelled on a Latin lexical item. Etymons: general adj., -ize suffix.

Etymology: < general adj. + -ize suffix, in sense 1 after post-classical Latin generalizare (1363 in the passage translated in quot. ?a1425 at sense 1). Compare French généraliser to make (a proposition or theorem) general (a1612), to form general concepts or notions by abstraction from particular instances (1730 or earlier), to bring into general use, to popularize (1784). Compare specialize v.

†1. transitive. To make (a statement) which has general application; to state as generally true. Obsolete. rare.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > language > statement > state or declare [verb (transitive)]

speakc900

sayOE

tell?a1160

to put forth?c1225

posea1325

allegec1330

declarec1330

exponec1380

to bring fortha1382

expounda1382

terminec1384

allaya1387

express1386

proport1387

purport1389

cough1393

generalize?a1425

deliverc1454

expremec1470

to show forth1498

promisea1500

term1546

to set forward1560

attribute1563

to throw out1573

quote1575

dictate1599

rendera1616

preport1616

enunciate1623

remonstrate1625

state1642

pronunciate1652

annunciate1763

present1779

enounce1805

report1842

constate1865

lodge1885

outen1951

?a1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac Grande Chirurgie (N.Y. Acad. Med.) f. 27^v (MED) Þat same takeþ þe 4 Magistri of scabious, And þai generalizeþ a notable worde of scabious, þat scabious, itake in drinke with wyne or eten, conuerteþ or turneþ inward apostemez to outward and dissolueþ þam insencibly.

a. transitive. To extend so as to make more general; esp. to convert (an idea, perception, etc.) into a general concept or rule; to broaden the application of.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > give a general character to [verb (transitive)]

universalize1676

generalize1710

1710 G. Berkeley Treat. Princ. Human Knowl. Introd. §11 The making use of Words, implys the having general Ideas. From which it follows, that Men who use Language are able to Abstract or Generalize their Ideas.

1771 J. Keir tr. P. J. Macquer Dict. Chem. II. 713 They have generalised the name of soap, and the best chemists give it now to all combinations of any saline substances with oils, rendered miscible with water by means of these saline substances.

1798 M. Edgeworth & R. L. Edgeworth Pract. Educ. I. x. 291 By degrees we may teach children to generalize their ideas, and to perceive that they like people for being either useful or agreeable.

1812 P. B. Shelley Proposals for Assoc. Philanthropists 1 None are more interesting to Philanthropy than those..that generalize and expand private into public feelings.

1834 E. Griffith et al. Cuvier's Animal Kingdom XII. 156 This name (pallium) has been generalized to designate the skin of the mollusca.

1864 F. C. Bowen Treat. Logic viii. 245 Whilst the form of reasoning itself, to which it properly applies, has never been generalized.

1871 B. Jowett in tr. Plato Dialogues IV. 61 Elsewhere he [sc. Plato] is disposed to regard temperance rather as a condition of all virtue than as a particular virtue. He generalizes temperance, as in the Republic he generalizes justice.

1944 Times 23 Nov. 7/4 Weyl had been able to include electromagnetism in the geometrical scheme... Eddington generalized Weyl's ideas, so giving a conceptual or graphical representation of physical phenomena which allowed a new insight into them.

1998 TESOL Q. 32 440 Although researchers seek to generalize knowledge, teachers seek to particularize it to their own context.

b. transitive. Mathematics and Philosophy. To make (a proposition, theorem, etc.) general in form or application; to extend (a proposition, theorem, etc.) so as to cover a wider or more general class of cases.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > mental capacity > philosophy > logic > logical classification > [verb (transitive)]

generalize1812

distribute1827

1812 J. Playfair Outl. Nat. Philos. I. 18 It is on this proposition, generalized..that the going of a clock or watch is taken for a measure of time.

1834 H. McMurtrie tr. G. Cuvier Animal Kingdom (abridged ed.) 2 Generalising and connecting the laws of these properties.

1958 Jrnl. Philos. 55 665 The particular proposition like ‘some men are wise’ becomes, when generalized, ‘Man may be wise’.

2004 C. Faith Rings & Things (ed. 2) xiv. 245 Theorems 14.52 and 14.53 generalize theorems of Kaplansky, Matlis and Small.

c. intransitive. Mathematics. Of a proof, equation, etc.: to be able to be generalized to; to be susceptible of generalization.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > be generally applicable [verb (intransitive)]

generalize1893

1893 O. Heaviside Electromagnetic Theory II. 444 The result,..by using the generalised binomial expansion, generalises to [etc.].

1923 Proc. Royal Soc. A. 103 167 This generalizes to N'κ = ϕ·V₁ιω^x.

1972 A. W. F. Edwards Likelihood v. 72 An alternative method, which readily generalizes to the case of many parameters.

2006 Found. & Trends in Networking (Nexis) Aug. 277 The theory generalizes to continuous random variables in natural ways.

3. transitive. To bring into general use; to make widespread, common, or familiar; to spread; to popularize.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > give a general character to [verb (transitive)] > make general, common, or universal

catholicize1629

universalize1748

generalize1756

globalize1937

1756 Considerations Present State Affairs 5 So much depends on the whole community's having such a fair view of the nature and causes of its danger, as may excite and generalize an enlightened zeal, for saving the nation.

1757 J. H. Grose Voy. E.-Indies viii. 116 But this name of Marattas is purely local, and confined to their own country; for all over India..they are more currently known by the appellation of Ghenims, unless their late spread of conquest should have more generalized it than it was before.

1818 W. Taylor in Monthly Mag. 46 403 A style of superstition which Rome..had deposited in the monastic libraries of Europe, was now generalized among the laity of the north by the efficacious industry of the press.

1824 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. 15 15 The last forty or fifty years..claim also the credit..of extending and generalizing the use of the potatoe.

1887 Sat. Rev. 3 Dec. 767 There has arisen a copious and very special literature..which has done much to generalize and enhance the public interest in the art and its professors.

1938 Times 1 Oct. 17/5 It seems scarcely likely that the fresh attempt to generalize the use of cheques in the case of cash transactions will have an immediate success.

1999 Jrnl. Consumer Res. 26 218 The voyeuristic consumption of the exoticized native other..was further generalized..through popular cultural representations.

a. intransitive. To form general concepts or notions by abstraction from particular instances; to arrive at or express general inferences or conclusions; (also) to make generalizations about.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > mental capacity > understanding > reason, faculty of reasoning > process of reasoning, ratiocination > process of inferring, inference > draw conclusions [verb (intransitive)]

infer1577

consequence1645

generalize1771

induct1832

1771 C. Milne Inst. Bot. i. 2 We are always led to generalize.

1792 D. Stewart Elem. Philos. Human Mind I. iv. §1. 158 This has led some philosophers to suppose..that we might have been so formed, as to be able to abstract, without being capable of generalising.

1837 W. Whewell Hist. Inductive Sci. I. 265 The particulars from which we are to generalize.

1871 E. B. Tylor Primitive Culture I. 10 We can drop individual differences out of sight, and thus can generalize on the arts and opinions of whole nations.

1884 R. W. Church Bacon iii. 59 He liked to observe, to generalise in shrewd and sometimes cynical epigrams.

1890 Mind 15 392 Through other such experiences..the child generalises to the universal significance of reality and unreality for all its thinking.

1919 Times 6 Sept. 51/4 Their knowledge is superficial and they are inclined to generalize, to seize upon some isolated fact, sometimes incorrect, and to draw from it conclusions which are often unfounded.

1969 D. R. Cressey Theft of Nation vi. 123 One cannot rightfully generalize about the nature and the extent of interaction between Cosa Nostra members in various cities.

1984 J. W. Deacon Introd. Mod. Mycol. (ed. 2) x. 151 We can generalize that successions of microorganisms are frequently associated with progressive changes in the composition of the substratum.

1999 P. Matthews Cannabis Culture (2000) i. 2 It's hard to describe what contemporary cannabis users are like, any more than we can talk about a wine-drinking class or generalize about people with mobile phones.

b. transitive. To draw general conclusions from (a piece of evidence, fact, etc.); to base a general law or statement upon; to interpret in order to form a general conclusion.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > mental capacity > understanding > reason, faculty of reasoning > process of reasoning, ratiocination > process of inferring, inference > infer, conclude [verb (transitive)] > based on hypothesis or data

educe1794

expound1821

generalizea1828

to put two and two together1849

extrapolate1905

retrodict1940

postdict1952

1795 W. Nicholson Dict. Chem. I. 28 Whatever reasons the cautious philosopher may find to doubt the stability of either theory, it is evident that the facts may be generalized without them.

a1828 Nicholson in Webster's New Internat. Dict. Eng. Lang. (1890) Copernicus generalized the celestial motions..Newton generalized them still more.

1831 H. T. De la Beche Geol. Man. iv. 182 The presence of fossils in particular strata was instantly generalized; and it became a well received theory..that every formation..contained the same organic remains, not to be discovered in those above or beneath.

1840 J. S. Mill Diss. & Disc. (1875) I. 406 Knowledge is experience generalized.

1868 C. Dickens Let. 25 Dec. (2002) XII. 255 A remarkable power of generalizing evidence, and balancing facts.

1946 P. L. Harriman 20th Cent. Psychol. 227 The field theoretical approach also provides indications for the circumstances under which one might generalize the results of such experimental group studies.

1965 Child Devel. 36 843 Some difficulties were discussed that were encountered in attempting to generalize the results of experiments on infantile stimulation across species and treatments.

2001 Jrnl. Sex Res. 38 314/2 The fact that Bogaert's study utilized university undergraduates who were participating in an experiment is a potential limitation on our ability to generalize these findings.

5. transitive. To deduce (a general conclusion, rule, etc.) from a specific instance.

ΚΠ

1778 J. G. Zimmerman Treat. Experience in Physic I. 87 Hippocrates..appears to have been long attached to particularities, before he began to generalize his principles.

1795 W. Seward Anecd. II. 342 Sir Joshua Reynolds (who with great propriety and acuteness called in the aid of metaphysics to generalize the principles of art).

a1834 S. T. Coleridge in Webster's Amer. Dict. Eng. Lang. (1886) A mere conclusion generalized from a great multitude of facts.

a1862 H. T. Buckle Hist. Civilisation Eng. (1873) III. v. 306 The object of the geometrician is to generalize the laws of space.

1885 W. D. Howells Rise Silas Lapham i. 4 It was from Lapham's answers that he generalised the history of his childhood.

1966 Managem. Sci. 12 B458 What can be generalized from this one example?

2004 A. M. Hussen Princ. Environ. Econ. (ed. 2) 85 It can then be generalized from this that it would pay to increase expenditure on pollution control.

a. transitive. To make (a thing) more general or indefinite; to remove or diminish the distinctive features or details of. Also intransitive.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > give a general character to [verb (transitive)] > make indefinite

generalize1808

1808 H. More Cœlebs in Search of Wife I. vii. 80 They were contented to generalize the doctrines of scripture.

1835 Fraser's Mag. 12 279 Travelling tends to generalise and rub off local habits, prejudices, and peculiarity of ideas.

1889 J. R. Lowell Lett. (1894) II. 381 The haze which softens and civilizes, perhaps I should say, artistically generalizes, all it touches.

1915 Jrnl. Amer. Oriental Soc. 35 204 In plotting the results on Chart B, no attempt was made..to soften or generalize the minute inaccuracies or excentricities [sic] of execution which seem to be present in every vocal utterance.

1989 Oxf. Mag. No. 50. 10/1 Once we generalize to an ideal of academic efficiency without qualification, we take off from reality.

2000 T. Katz Impressionist Subj. vi. 191 Collective identity promises to generalize away the local details of character, of class, or of history.

2003 J. Thurston et al. Intergrated Geospatial Technol. v. 134 The map could have been published many years ago, and many of the current features were not apparent... Features may have been generalized beyond recognition.

b. transitive. Painting. To render the typical or general characteristics of (a subject) rather than the individual peculiarities. Also intransitive.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > painting > qualities or styles of painting > [verb (intransitive)] > prefer general to particular features

generalizea1825

1797 J. Reynolds Wks. 212 There is an absolute necessity for the Painter to generalize his notions; to paint particulars is not to paint nature, it is only to paint circumstances.]

a1825 H. Fuseli Lect. ix, in J. Knowles Life & Writings H. Fuseli (1831) II. 363 Tiziano..strove to generalise, to elevate, or invigorate the tones of Nature.

1858 J. Ruskin Arrows of Chace (1880) I. 111 There never was anybody who generalized, since paint was first ground, except Opie, and Benjamin West, and Fuseli, and one or two other such modern stars.

1942 Monumenta Nipponica 5 411 The artist does not, in contrast to European classical art, generalize nature.

1961 Amer. Artist 3 Mar. 65/1 His pictures generalize, though they are inspired by a particular locale.

1996 Huntington Libr. Q. 59 355 The painter should generalize his representations of the natural world rather than particularize them.

7. intransitive. To attend to general considerations; to take an overview of a subject or issue as opposed to considering specifics; to be a generalist. rare.Opposed to specialize.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > be generally applicable [verb (intransitive)] > attend to general considerations

generalize1834

1834 F. Marryat Peter Simple I. xv. 247 You see, Mr. Simple, it's the duty of an officer to generalise, and be attentive to parts, only in consideration of the safety of the whole.

1930 A. Flexner Universities 23 There must somehow be drawn into the university also minds that can both specialize and generalize.

1990 Mergers & Acquisitions Rep. (Nexis) 18 June 3 It is easier to get a specialist..to generalize than to get a generalist to quickly learn the ins-and-outs of more complicated deals.

2002 Asia Computer Weekly (Nexis) 29 July The information technology professional today is faced with a question that arises from the new demands of the corporate landscape: ‘To be competitive, should I specialise or generalise?’

8. transitive. To designate by a general name or description.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > language > naming > give a name to [verb (transitive)] > call or give as name to > by general name

generalize1842

1842 Tait's Edinb. Mag. 9 210 It is not often marriages take place in a family where the daughters are only generalized as ‘the So-and-So's’.

a1854 H. Reed Lect. Eng. Lit. (1855) xi. 341 The processes which we generalize under the names of wit and humour are kindred with the most intense passion.

1886 Cent. Mag. Apr. 815/2 This spiritual influence or potentate is the recognized antagonist and opposite of Obi, the great African manitou or deity, or him whom the Congoes vaguely generalize as Zombi.

1925 Harvard Law Rev. 39 206 There was some tendency to generalize these estates under the name ‘fee tail’.

1994 Official Kremlin Internat. News Broadcast (Nexis) 5 July I think you could probably generalize it by calling it a money connection.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

单词	generalize
释义	generalizev. Brit. /ˈdʒɛn(ə)rəlʌɪz/, /ˈdʒɛn(ə)rl̩ʌɪz/, U.S. /ˈdʒɛn(ə)rəˌlaɪz/ Forms: late Middle English 1700s– generalize, 1700s– generalise. Origin: Formed within English, by derivation; originally modelled on a Latin lexical item. Etymons: general adj., -ize suffix. Etymology: < general adj. + -ize suffix, in sense 1 after post-classical Latin generalizare (1363 in the passage translated in quot. ?a1425 at sense 1). Compare French généraliser to make (a proposition or theorem) general (a1612), to form general concepts or notions by abstraction from particular instances (1730 or earlier), to bring into general use, to popularize (1784). Compare specialize v. †1. transitive. To make (a statement) which has general application; to state as generally true. Obsolete. rare. ΘΚΠ the mind > language > statement > state or declare [verb (transitive)] speakc900 sayOE sayOE tell?a1160 to put forth?c1225 posea1325 allegec1330 declarec1330 exponec1380 to bring fortha1382 expounda1382 terminec1384 allaya1387 express1386 proport1387 purport1389 cough1393 generalize?a1425 deliverc1454 expremec1470 to show forth1498 promisea1500 term1546 to set forward1560 attribute1563 to throw out1573 quote1575 dictate1599 rendera1616 preport1616 enunciate1623 remonstrate1625 state1642 pronunciate1652 annunciate1763 present1779 enounce1805 report1842 constate1865 lodge1885 outen1951 ?a1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac Grande Chirurgie (N.Y. Acad. Med.) f. 27^v (MED) Þat same takeþ þe 4 Magistri of scabious, And þai generalizeþ a notable worde of scabious, þat scabious, itake in drinke with wyne or eten, conuerteþ or turneþ inward apostemez to outward and dissolueþ þam insencibly. 2. a. transitive. To extend so as to make more general; esp. to convert (an idea, perception, etc.) into a general concept or rule; to broaden the application of. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > give a general character to [verb (transitive)] universalize1676 generalize1710 1710 G. Berkeley Treat. Princ. Human Knowl. Introd. §11 The making use of Words, implys the having general Ideas. From which it follows, that Men who use Language are able to Abstract or Generalize their Ideas. 1771 J. Keir tr. P. J. Macquer Dict. Chem. II. 713 They have generalised the name of soap, and the best chemists give it now to all combinations of any saline substances with oils, rendered miscible with water by means of these saline substances. 1798 M. Edgeworth & R. L. Edgeworth Pract. Educ. I. x. 291 By degrees we may teach children to generalize their ideas, and to perceive that they like people for being either useful or agreeable. 1812 P. B. Shelley Proposals for Assoc. Philanthropists 1 None are more interesting to Philanthropy than those..that generalize and expand private into public feelings. 1834 E. Griffith et al. Cuvier's Animal Kingdom XII. 156 This name (pallium) has been generalized to designate the skin of the mollusca. 1864 F. C. Bowen Treat. Logic viii. 245 Whilst the form of reasoning itself, to which it properly applies, has never been generalized. 1871 B. Jowett in tr. Plato Dialogues IV. 61 Elsewhere he [sc. Plato] is disposed to regard temperance rather as a condition of all virtue than as a particular virtue. He generalizes temperance, as in the Republic he generalizes justice. 1944 Times 23 Nov. 7/4 Weyl had been able to include electromagnetism in the geometrical scheme... Eddington generalized Weyl's ideas, so giving a conceptual or graphical representation of physical phenomena which allowed a new insight into them. 1998 TESOL Q. 32 440 Although researchers seek to generalize knowledge, teachers seek to particularize it to their own context. b. transitive. Mathematics and Philosophy. To make (a proposition, theorem, etc.) general in form or application; to extend (a proposition, theorem, etc.) so as to cover a wider or more general class of cases. ΘΚΠ the mind > mental capacity > philosophy > logic > logical classification > [verb (transitive)] generalize1812 distribute1827 1812 J. Playfair Outl. Nat. Philos. I. 18 It is on this proposition, generalized..that the going of a clock or watch is taken for a measure of time. 1834 H. McMurtrie tr. G. Cuvier Animal Kingdom (abridged ed.) 2 Generalising and connecting the laws of these properties. 1958 Jrnl. Philos. 55 665 The particular proposition like ‘some men are wise’ becomes, when generalized, ‘Man may be wise’. 2004 C. Faith Rings & Things (ed. 2) xiv. 245 Theorems 14.52 and 14.53 generalize theorems of Kaplansky, Matlis and Small. c. intransitive. Mathematics. Of a proof, equation, etc.: to be able to be generalized to; to be susceptible of generalization. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > be generally applicable [verb (intransitive)] generalize1893 1893 O. Heaviside Electromagnetic Theory II. 444 The result,..by using the generalised binomial expansion, generalises to [etc.]. 1923 Proc. Royal Soc. A. 103 167 This generalizes to N'κ = ϕ·V₁ιω^x. 1972 A. W. F. Edwards Likelihood v. 72 An alternative method, which readily generalizes to the case of many parameters. 2006 Found. & Trends in Networking (Nexis) Aug. 277 The theory generalizes to continuous random variables in natural ways. 3. transitive. To bring into general use; to make widespread, common, or familiar; to spread; to popularize. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > give a general character to [verb (transitive)] > make general, common, or universal catholicize1629 universalize1748 generalize1756 globalize1937 1756 Considerations Present State Affairs 5 So much depends on the whole community's having such a fair view of the nature and causes of its danger, as may excite and generalize an enlightened zeal, for saving the nation. 1757 J. H. Grose Voy. E.-Indies viii. 116 But this name of Marattas is purely local, and confined to their own country; for all over India..they are more currently known by the appellation of Ghenims, unless their late spread of conquest should have more generalized it than it was before. 1818 W. Taylor in Monthly Mag. 46 403 A style of superstition which Rome..had deposited in the monastic libraries of Europe, was now generalized among the laity of the north by the efficacious industry of the press. 1824 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. 15 15 The last forty or fifty years..claim also the credit..of extending and generalizing the use of the potatoe. 1887 Sat. Rev. 3 Dec. 767 There has arisen a copious and very special literature..which has done much to generalize and enhance the public interest in the art and its professors. 1938 Times 1 Oct. 17/5 It seems scarcely likely that the fresh attempt to generalize the use of cheques in the case of cash transactions will have an immediate success. 1999 Jrnl. Consumer Res. 26 218 The voyeuristic consumption of the exoticized native other..was further generalized..through popular cultural representations. 4. a. intransitive. To form general concepts or notions by abstraction from particular instances; to arrive at or express general inferences or conclusions; (also) to make generalizations about. ΘΚΠ the mind > mental capacity > understanding > reason, faculty of reasoning > process of reasoning, ratiocination > process of inferring, inference > draw conclusions [verb (intransitive)] infer1577 consequence1645 generalize1771 induct1832 1771 C. Milne Inst. Bot. i. 2 We are always led to generalize. 1792 D. Stewart Elem. Philos. Human Mind I. iv. §1. 158 This has led some philosophers to suppose..that we might have been so formed, as to be able to abstract, without being capable of generalising. 1837 W. Whewell Hist. Inductive Sci. I. 265 The particulars from which we are to generalize. 1871 E. B. Tylor Primitive Culture I. 10 We can drop individual differences out of sight, and thus can generalize on the arts and opinions of whole nations. 1884 R. W. Church Bacon iii. 59 He liked to observe, to generalise in shrewd and sometimes cynical epigrams. 1890 Mind 15 392 Through other such experiences..the child generalises to the universal significance of reality and unreality for all its thinking. 1919 Times 6 Sept. 51/4 Their knowledge is superficial and they are inclined to generalize, to seize upon some isolated fact, sometimes incorrect, and to draw from it conclusions which are often unfounded. 1969 D. R. Cressey Theft of Nation vi. 123 One cannot rightfully generalize about the nature and the extent of interaction between Cosa Nostra members in various cities. 1984 J. W. Deacon Introd. Mod. Mycol. (ed. 2) x. 151 We can generalize that successions of microorganisms are frequently associated with progressive changes in the composition of the substratum. 1999 P. Matthews Cannabis Culture (2000) i. 2 It's hard to describe what contemporary cannabis users are like, any more than we can talk about a wine-drinking class or generalize about people with mobile phones. b. transitive. To draw general conclusions from (a piece of evidence, fact, etc.); to base a general law or statement upon; to interpret in order to form a general conclusion. ΘΚΠ the mind > mental capacity > understanding > reason, faculty of reasoning > process of reasoning, ratiocination > process of inferring, inference > infer, conclude [verb (transitive)] > based on hypothesis or data educe1794 expound1821 generalizea1828 to put two and two together1849 extrapolate1905 retrodict1940 postdict1952 1795 W. Nicholson Dict. Chem. I. 28 Whatever reasons the cautious philosopher may find to doubt the stability of either theory, it is evident that the facts may be generalized without them. a1828 Nicholson in Webster's New Internat. Dict. Eng. Lang. (1890) Copernicus generalized the celestial motions..Newton generalized them still more. 1831 H. T. De la Beche Geol. Man. iv. 182 The presence of fossils in particular strata was instantly generalized; and it became a well received theory..that every formation..contained the same organic remains, not to be discovered in those above or beneath. 1840 J. S. Mill Diss. & Disc. (1875) I. 406 Knowledge is experience generalized. 1868 C. Dickens Let. 25 Dec. (2002) XII. 255 A remarkable power of generalizing evidence, and balancing facts. 1946 P. L. Harriman 20th Cent. Psychol. 227 The field theoretical approach also provides indications for the circumstances under which one might generalize the results of such experimental group studies. 1965 Child Devel. 36 843 Some difficulties were discussed that were encountered in attempting to generalize the results of experiments on infantile stimulation across species and treatments. 2001 Jrnl. Sex Res. 38 314/2 The fact that Bogaert's study utilized university undergraduates who were participating in an experiment is a potential limitation on our ability to generalize these findings. 5. transitive. To deduce (a general conclusion, rule, etc.) from a specific instance. ΚΠ 1778 J. G. Zimmerman Treat. Experience in Physic I. 87 Hippocrates..appears to have been long attached to particularities, before he began to generalize his principles. 1795 W. Seward Anecd. II. 342 Sir Joshua Reynolds (who with great propriety and acuteness called in the aid of metaphysics to generalize the principles of art). a1834 S. T. Coleridge in Webster's Amer. Dict. Eng. Lang. (1886) A mere conclusion generalized from a great multitude of facts. a1862 H. T. Buckle Hist. Civilisation Eng. (1873) III. v. 306 The object of the geometrician is to generalize the laws of space. 1885 W. D. Howells Rise Silas Lapham i. 4 It was from Lapham's answers that he generalised the history of his childhood. 1966 Managem. Sci. 12 B458 What can be generalized from this one example? 2004 A. M. Hussen Princ. Environ. Econ. (ed. 2) 85 It can then be generalized from this that it would pay to increase expenditure on pollution control. 6. a. transitive. To make (a thing) more general or indefinite; to remove or diminish the distinctive features or details of. Also intransitive. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > give a general character to [verb (transitive)] > make indefinite generalize1808 1808 H. More Cœlebs in Search of Wife I. vii. 80 They were contented to generalize the doctrines of scripture. 1835 Fraser's Mag. 12 279 Travelling tends to generalise and rub off local habits, prejudices, and peculiarity of ideas. 1889 J. R. Lowell Lett. (1894) II. 381 The haze which softens and civilizes, perhaps I should say, artistically generalizes, all it touches. 1915 Jrnl. Amer. Oriental Soc. 35 204 In plotting the results on Chart B, no attempt was made..to soften or generalize the minute inaccuracies or excentricities [sic] of execution which seem to be present in every vocal utterance. 1989 Oxf. Mag. No. 50. 10/1 Once we generalize to an ideal of academic efficiency without qualification, we take off from reality. 2000 T. Katz Impressionist Subj. vi. 191 Collective identity promises to generalize away the local details of character, of class, or of history. 2003 J. Thurston et al. Intergrated Geospatial Technol. v. 134 The map could have been published many years ago, and many of the current features were not apparent... Features may have been generalized beyond recognition. b. transitive. Painting. To render the typical or general characteristics of (a subject) rather than the individual peculiarities. Also intransitive. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > painting > qualities or styles of painting > [verb (intransitive)] > prefer general to particular features generalizea1825 1797 J. Reynolds Wks. 212 There is an absolute necessity for the Painter to generalize his notions; to paint particulars is not to paint nature, it is only to paint circumstances.] a1825 H. Fuseli Lect. ix, in J. Knowles Life & Writings H. Fuseli (1831) II. 363 Tiziano..strove to generalise, to elevate, or invigorate the tones of Nature. 1858 J. Ruskin Arrows of Chace (1880) I. 111 There never was anybody who generalized, since paint was first ground, except Opie, and Benjamin West, and Fuseli, and one or two other such modern stars. 1942 Monumenta Nipponica 5 411 The artist does not, in contrast to European classical art, generalize nature. 1961 Amer. Artist 3 Mar. 65/1 His pictures generalize, though they are inspired by a particular locale. 1996 Huntington Libr. Q. 59 355 The painter should generalize his representations of the natural world rather than particularize them. 7. intransitive. To attend to general considerations; to take an overview of a subject or issue as opposed to considering specifics; to be a generalist. rare.Opposed to specialize. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > be generally applicable [verb (intransitive)] > attend to general considerations generalize1834 1834 F. Marryat Peter Simple I. xv. 247 You see, Mr. Simple, it's the duty of an officer to generalise, and be attentive to parts, only in consideration of the safety of the whole. 1930 A. Flexner Universities 23 There must somehow be drawn into the university also minds that can both specialize and generalize. 1990 Mergers & Acquisitions Rep. (Nexis) 18 June 3 It is easier to get a specialist..to generalize than to get a generalist to quickly learn the ins-and-outs of more complicated deals. 2002 Asia Computer Weekly (Nexis) 29 July The information technology professional today is faced with a question that arises from the new demands of the corporate landscape: ‘To be competitive, should I specialise or generalise?’ 8. transitive. To designate by a general name or description. ΘΚΠ the mind > language > naming > give a name to [verb (transitive)] > call or give as name to > by general name generalize1842 1842 Tait's Edinb. Mag. 9 210 It is not often marriages take place in a family where the daughters are only generalized as ‘the So-and-So's’. a1854 H. Reed Lect. Eng. Lit. (1855) xi. 341 The processes which we generalize under the names of wit and humour are kindred with the most intense passion. 1886 Cent. Mag. Apr. 815/2 This spiritual influence or potentate is the recognized antagonist and opposite of Obi, the great African manitou or deity, or him whom the Congoes vaguely generalize as Zombi. 1925 Harvard Law Rev. 39 206 There was some tendency to generalize these estates under the name ‘fee tail’. 1994 Official Kremlin Internat. News Broadcast (Nexis) 5 July I think you could probably generalize it by calling it a money connection. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022). < v.?a1425
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