gen·er·al

[jen-er-uhl]
adjective
1.
of or pertaining to all persons or things belonging to a group or category: a general meeting of the employees.
2.
of, pertaining to, or true of such persons or things in the main, with possible exceptions; common to most; prevalent; usual: the general mood of the people.
3.
not limited to one class, field, product, service, etc.; miscellaneous: the general public; general science.
4.
considering or dealing with overall characteristics, universal aspects, or important elements, especially without considering all details or specific aspects: general instructions; a general description; a general resemblance one to another.
5.
not specific or definite: I could give them only a general idea of what was going on.
6.
(of anesthesia or an anesthetic) causing loss of consciousness and abolishing sensitivity to pain throughout the body.
7.
having extended command or superior or chief rank: the secretary general of the United Nations; the attorney general.
noun
8.
Military.
a.
U.S. Army and Air force. an officer ranking above a lieutenant general and below a general of the army or general of the air force.
b.
U.S. Army. an officer of any of the five highest ranks: a brigadier general, major general, lieutenant general, general, or general of the army.
c.
U.S. Marine Corps. an officer holding the highest rank in the corps.
d.
(in numerous armies) an officer in the highest, second, or third highest rank, as one ranking immediately below a field marshal in the British army.
9.
Ecclesiastical. the chief official of a religious order.
10.
something that is general; generality.
11.
Archaic. the general public.
00:10
General is always a great word to know.
So is slumgullion. Does it mean:
a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.
LEARN MORE UNUSUAL WORDS WITH WORD DYNAMO...
Idioms
12.
in general,
a.
with respect to the whole class referred to; as a whole: He likes people in general.
b.
as a rule; usually: In general, the bus is here by 9 a.m.
Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English < Latin generālis, equivalent to gener- (stem of genus) genus + -ālis -al1

Related forms
gen·er·al·ness, noun
pseu·do·gen·er·al, adjective
un·der·gen·er·al, noun

Synonyms
1, 2. customary, prevailing, regular, ordinary; catholic. General, common, popular, universal agree in the idea of being nonexclusive and widespread. General means belonging to, or prevailing throughout, a whole class or body collectively, irrespective of individuals: a general belief. Common means shared by all, and belonging to one as much as another: a common interest; common fund; but use of this sense is frequently avoided because of ambiguity of sense. Popular means belonging to, adapted for, or favored by the people or the public generally, rather than by a particular (especially a superior) class: the popular conception; a popular candidate. Universal means found everywhere, and with no exceptions: a universal longing. 5. ill-defined, inexact, imprecise, approximate.

Antonyms
1. special, limited. 5. definite, exact, precise.
Dictionary.com Unabridged

Tom Thumb

noun
1.
a diminutive hero of folk tales.
2.
an extremely small person; dwarf.
3.
General, nickname of Charles Sherwood Stratton.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To General
Collins
World English Dictionary
general (ˈdʒɛnərəl, ˈdʒɛnrəl) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—adj
1.  common; widespread: a general feeling of horror at the crime
2.  of, including, applying to, or participated in by all or most of the members of a group, category, or community
3.  relating to various branches of an activity, profession, etc; not specialized: general office work
4.  including various or miscellaneous items: general knowledge; a general store
5.  not specific as to detail; overall: a general description of the merchandise
6.  not definite; vague: give me a general idea of when you will finish
7.  applicable or true in most cases; usual
8.  (prenominal or immediately postpositive) having superior or extended authority or rank: general manager; consul general
9.  See honours Also: pass designating a degree awarded at some universities, studied at a lower academic standard than an honours degree
10.  med relating to or involving the entire body or many of its parts; systemic
11.  logic (of a statement) not specifying an individual subject but quantifying over a domain
 
—n
12.  an officer of a rank senior to lieutenant general, esp one who commands a large military formation
13.  any person acting as a leader and applying strategy or tactics
14.  a general condition or principle: opposed to particular
15.  a title for the head of a religious order, congregation, etc
16.  med short for general anaesthetic
17.  archaic the people; public
18.  in general generally; mostly or usually
 
[C13: from Latin generālis of a particular kind, from genus kind]
 
'generalness
 
—n

Tom Thumb
 
—n
1.  General, stage name of Charles Stratton. 1838--83, US midget, exhibited in P. T. Barnum's circus
2.  a dwarf; midget
 
[after Tom Thumb, the tiny hero of several English folk tales]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

general
c.1300 (implied in generally), from L. generalis "relating to all, of a whole class" (contrasted with specialis), from genus (gen. generis) "stock, kind" (see genus). Noun sense of "commander of an army" is 1576 shortening of captain general, from M.Fr. capitaine général.
The title generalissimo (1621) is from It., superlative of generale, from a sense development similar to the Fr.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary

Tom Thumb definition


A thumb-sized hero of children's stories from the sixteenth century on.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases

general

see in general; on (general) principle.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

general

title and rank of a senior army officer, usually one who commands units larger than a regiment or its equivalent or units consisting of more than one arm of the service. Frequently, however, a general is a staff officer who does not command troops but who plans their operations in the field. General, lieutenant general, and major general are the first, second, and third grades of general officers in many armies. The United States Army, Air Force, and Marines have a fourth general officer grade, brigadier general (brigadier in the British Army). The highest U.S. Army rank, five-star general of the army, was created in 1944 and was conferred upon Henry Harley "Hap" Arnold, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Douglas MacArthur, and George C. Marshall in that year and upon Omar N. Bradley in 1950. The four-star rank of general of the army of the United States was established for Ulysses S. Grant in 1866 and was bestowed later upon William T. Sherman and Philip Sheridan; the unique four-star rank of general of the armies of the United States, created in 1799 for George Washington but never held by him, was conferred upon John J. Pershing in 1919.

Learn more about general with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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Example sentences
In general, asteroids are heated by the decay of radioactive atoms scattered
  throughout their insides.
But in public they go on and on and on about the need for people in general to
  demonstrate such responsibility.
People may endure miserable commutes out of an inability to weigh their general
  well-being against quantifiable material gains.
We are doing our part in bringing the awareness of cervical cancer to the
  general public.
Images for General
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