generalist

C2+ Topic:People & Society

US /ˈdʒɛnrəlɪst/ UK /ˈdʒɛnrəlɪst/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
a person competent in several fields rather than one specialty

As a generalist, the doctor handled everything from rashes to fractures.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a person competent in... polymathall-rounderjack-of-all-trades

Opposites

specialist expert

Word family

Derived forms generalism

Related forms general generalize

Etymology

From 'general' (from Latin 'generalis' 'relating to a whole class', from 'genus' 'kind, class') plus the agent suffix '-ist'.

generalis Latin genus Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

People & Society Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# generalist

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈdʒɛnrəlɪst/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈdʒɛnrəlɪst/

## Meanings
1. a person competent in several fields rather than one specialty

## Examples
- As a generalist, the doctor handled everything from rashes to fractures.

## Synonyms
- polymath
- all-rounder
- jack-of-all-trades

## Antonyms
- specialist
- expert

## Derived Forms
- generalism

## Related Forms
- general
- generalize

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: generalis
- Root: genus

## Etymology
From 'general' (from Latin 'generalis' 'relating to a whole class', from 'genus' 'kind, class') plus the agent suffix '-ist'.

## AI Etymology
Generalist comes from 'general' (from Latin 'generalis' 'relating to a whole class', from 'genus' 'kind, class') plus the agent suffix '-ist'. The development is chiefly a borrowing or learned continuation, carrying an older form and meaning into English rather than building the word from a purely native base. In present use, it is used as a noun and adjective meaning "a person competent in several fields rather than one specialty", so the historical material remains connected with the current sense rather than standing as bare ancestry. The wider English family includes derivatives such as generalism and related forms such as general and generalize, showing how the same historical material continues to organize neighboring vocabulary. The named historical forms include Latin generalis and Latin genus, keeping the history tied to concrete forms rather than a loose resemblance.

## Topics
- People & Society
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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