general English · revision 2034

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=before 1200 (Ancrene Riwle)|origins=ine-pro *genə-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈdʒen.ər.əl/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|general]], [[bor|fro|general]] and also directly from [[la|generālis|t=relating to all, of a whole class]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from [[m|la|genus|t=stock, kind]] (stem [[m|la|gener-]]) and the suffix [[m|la|-ālis]],^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) from [[ine-pro|*genə-|t=to give birth, beget]].^(Etymonline)^(AHD 2000) Merriam-Webster gives the route through [[xno|general]].^(MW Collegiate) Barnhart suggests that the sense “relating to all” became prominent through medieval study of Aristotle, whose logic paired [[m|la|genus]] with [[m|la|speciēs]].^(Barnhart 1988) The noun meaning “army commander” is short for [[captain general]], after [[frm|capitaine général|t=commander-in-chief]];^(Etymonline)^(NODE 1998) Barnhart traces it through [[m|frm|général]] to [[it|generale]].^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Of wide application, affecting or involving all, as opposed to special or particular: probably before 1200, in the ''Ancrene Riwle''.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ From the late 14th century ''general'' was added to titles of officials to mark superior rank and wide jurisdiction,^(Etymonline) as in later ''attorney general''.^(HTOED) ''In general'' “as a rule, without exception” is late 14th century,^(Etymonline) and the noun “a whole class of things” appears about 1380, in Chaucer's translation of Boethius.^(Barnhart 1988) A ''general rule'' is from about 1400.^(Etymonline) In the 16th century the noun came to mean the head of a religious order^(Hoad 1986) and an army commander (1576).^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) A ''general hospital'' (1737) is one that takes all patients,^(Etymonline) and the American ''general store'' (1810) one that sells all kinds of goods.^(Etymonline) ''Generality'' appears about 1378, in Wycliffe,^(Barnhart 1988) and ''generalization'' in 1761, in Adam Smith.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 1200 – adjective (''Ancrene Riwle'').^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 1378 – ''generality''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 1380 – noun, a whole class (Chaucer).^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * late 14th century – in titles, and ''in general''.^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1400 – ''general rule''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 16th century – head of a religious order.^(Hoad 1986)

+ * 1576 – commander of an army.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1737 – ''general hospital''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1761 – ''generalization'' (Adam Smith).^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1810 – ''general store''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Applying to or affecting the whole or every member of a class.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # True of most cases, though not all; [[prevalent]].^(AHD)

+ # Not limited in scope; not [[specialized]]: ''general knowledge''.^(AHD)

+ # Not detailed or precise: ''a general idea''.^(AHD)^(HTOED)

+ # Highest in rank; [[chief]]: ''secretary general''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # An officer of the highest rank in an [[army]].^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # A statement or principle that applies to the whole.^(AHD)

+ # The head of a [[religious order]].^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[generalness]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[genus]]

+ * [[generic]]

+ * [[gender]]

+ * [[generate]]

+ * [[generality]]

+ * [[generalissimo]]

+ * [[generous]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ RHWU distinguishes ''general'', which means prevailing through a whole class or body, ''common'', shared by all alike, ''popular'', belonging to or favoured by the people at large, and ''universal'', found everywhere without exception.^(RHWU)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}