generalist

G2E1N1E1R1A1L1I1S1T1
Canada, US, UK/ˈd͡ʒɛn.(ə.)ɹə.lɪst/Australia/ˈd͡ʒen.(ə.)ɹə.lɪst/

noun

A person with a broad general knowledge, especially one with more than superficial knowledge in several areas and the ability to combine ideas from diverse fields.

Similar
nonspecialistRenaissance man
Opposite
specialiststenotopic
OriginEnglish general ← Middle English general ← Latin generālis →
Less commonScrabble 11
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Meanings

noungeneralist (plural generalists)

plural generalists

  1. A person with a broad general knowledge, especially one with more than superficial knowledge in several areas and the ability to combine ideas from diverse fields.

    Synonyms: nonspecialist

  2. medicineA general practitioner.
  3. biologySpecies which can thrive in a wide variety of environmental conditions. A eurytopic species.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA person with a broad general knowledge, especially one with more than superficial knowledge in several areas and the ability to combine ideas from diverse fields.

Similar
nonspecialist
Opposite
specialiststenotopic

More synonyms by meaning

nouna modern scholar who is in a position to acquire more than superficial knowledge about many different interests

Similar
Renaissance man
Opposite
specialist
Broader
scholarscholarly person
Also see
dilettantejack of all tradesnonexpertnonspecialistrenaissance man

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*ǵenh₁-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*ǵénh₁os
  3. Proto-Italic*genos
  4. Latingenus, generis
  5. Proto-Indo-European*h₂el-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*h₂élisder.?
  7. Latingenerāli
  8. Anglo-Normangenera
  9. Middle Frenchgenera
  10. Latingenerālis
  11. Middle Englishgeneral
  12. Englishgeneral
  13. Englishgeneralist

From general + -ist.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan generalista, generalista
  • generalistaperson with a broad general knowledge
  • generalistageneral practitioner
Chinese 通才
  • 通才 (tōngcái)person with a broad general knowledge
Finnish yleismies, yleislääkäri
  • yleismiesperson with a broad general knowledge
  • yleislääkärigeneral practitioner
  • generalistibiological species
French généraliste
  • généralisteperson with a broad general knowledge
German Generalist, Generalist
  • Generalistperson with a broad general knowledge
  • Generalistbiological species
Japanese 何でも屋, ゼネラリスト
  • 何でも屋 (nandemoya)person with a broad general knowledge
  • ゼネラリスト (zenerarisuto)person with a broad general knowledge
Spanish generalista, generalista
  • generalistaperson with a broad general knowledge
  • generalistageneral practitioner
Swedish generalist
  • generalistperson with a broad general knowledge

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

easterling
Cite this entry
APA

generalist. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/generalist

MLA

“generalist.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/generalist. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “generalist,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/generalist.

Source: generalist on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.