generalization
Americannoun
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generalizations
plural
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the act or process of generalizing.
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a result of this process; a general statement, idea, or principle.
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Logic.
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a proposition asserting something to be true either of all members of a certain class or of an indefinite part of that class.
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the process of obtaining such propositions.
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Psychology.
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Also called stimulus generalization. the act or process of responding to a stimulus similar to but distinct from the conditioned stimulus.
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Also called response generalization. the act or process of making a different but similar response to the same stimulus.
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Also called mediated generalization. the act or process of responding to a stimulus not physically similar to the conditioned stimulus and not previously encountered in conditioning.
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the act or process of perceiving similarity or relation between different stimuli, as between words, colors, sounds, lights, concepts or feelings; the formation of a general notion.
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noun
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a principle, theory, etc, with general application
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the act or an instance of generalizing
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psychol the evoking of a response learned to one stimulus by a different but similar stimulus See also conditioning
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logic the derivation of a general statement from a particular one, formally by prefixing a quantifier and replacing a subject term by a bound variable. If the quantifier is universal ( universal generalization ) the argument is not in general valid; if it is existential ( existential generalization ) it is valid
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logic any statement ascribing a property to every member of a class ( universal generalization ) or to one or more members ( existential generalization )
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of generalization
First recorded in 1755–65; generalize + -ation
Explanation
Taking something specific and applying it more broadly is making a generalization. It's a generalization to say all dogs chase squirrels. A generalization is taking one or a few facts and making a broader, more universal statement. If all the girls you know play with dolls, you might make the generalization that all girls play with dolls. Scientists try to make generalizations based on research — the more data they have, the more accurate the generalization. Generalizations can be similar to stereotypes in that they are sometimes wrong and harmful. Usually, it's best to stick with specifics and avoid generalizations.
Vocabulary lists containing generalization
Argumentative Writing
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Argumentative Writing, List 2
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "G"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Its strategic lessons—balance differing viewpoints, understand politics, remain humble and optimistic, change the game—are difficult to argue with, because they operate at such a high level of generalization.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
But to make some generalization that all career women are psychotic because Glenn Close happened to be psychotic at the end of that movie is just silly.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
They learn mappings from inputs to outputs, sometimes with impressive generalization, but the computation is still a digital procedure running on hardware built for a very different style of computing.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 24, 2025
There are tens of thousands of undocumented university students in higher education throughout the country, so you can’t make this kind of generalization as a justification for engaging in arrest.
From Slate ● Sep. 15, 2025
And if there is a reasonable chance that readers will misinterpret a statistical tendency as an absolute law, a responsible writer will anticipate the oversight and qualify the generalization accordingly.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
Evocative anecdotes and sharp observations work better than vague praise or sweeping generalizations.
From MarketWatch ● May 19, 2026
Throughout “Those Who Are About to Die,” the reader comes upon fascinating generalizations, usually introduced by attention-arousing brief sentences.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 3, 2026
It blasted his rant as “dangerous and wrong” on social media, adding that “responsible public voices should be awaiting a full investigation, not making generalizations and demonizing law-abiding citizens.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 26, 2026
Responsible public voices should be awaiting a full investigation, not making generalizations and demonizing law-abiding citizens.
From Salon ● Jan. 26, 2026
I realize that we are often wary of making these kinds of broad generalizations about different cultural groups — and with good reason.
From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
