as in stereotype
an idea or statement about all of the members of a group or all the instances of a situation
the generalization that children who like violent entertainment grow up to be violent criminals
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Recent Examples of generalization
Walz said in a press conference on Thursday that his office is working to bring those involved in fraud in Minnesota to justice, but said it can be done without generalizations about a whole group of people.
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Tesfaye Negussie, ABC News, 8 Dec. 2025
The sample is going to be used to make generalizations about everybody, Turow said, by using complex statistical modeling and artificial intelligence.
—Susan Tompor, Freep.com, 4 Dec. 2025
While good psychology information is available online, social media has amplified misinformation and over-generalizations.
—Big Think, 27 Nov. 2025
Maggiulli’s generalization assumes that the middle class can even afford to buy a home, and some top housing CEOs say that’s no sure thing these days.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 26 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for generalization
Recent Examples of Synonyms for generalization
Noun
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Jordan's role on All My Children was originally played by the late Chadwick Boseman, who was fired after just one week on set after criticizing Reggie's character arc for playing into racial stereotypes (Jordan and Boseman would later go on to star together in 2018's Black Panther).—
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Boseman was allegedly let go after voicing his concerns that Reggie’s character relied too much on racial stereotypes.—
Noun
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The company underlined that stellarators are one of the top performing fusion concepts in the race to reach net positive energy.—
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Now, none of the concepts redrawing state borders have a political chance of becoming reality.—
Noun
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The outlet also said that Rezaei maintained that Iran would abandon any notion of a ceasefire if attacked.—
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So just for the sake of this exercise, let’s go along with the notion of Terry Rozier’s cap hold and Simone Fontecchio’s expiring.—
Noun
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Louis Harveson, Sul Ross State’s associate provost for research and development, helped guide the effort from conception to launch.—
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Once conception occurs, a first prenatal appointment is usually recommended between week six and eight.—
Noun
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Those are, indeed, pat, credible theories and predictions.—
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But now, in the planet’s capital city of Apperax, a murder is committed with no suspects, forensics or theories.—
Cite this Entry
“Generalization.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/generalization. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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