generally

English

Etymology

general +‎ -ly

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d͡ʒɛnɹəliː/

• Audio (US)

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Adverb

generally ‎(comparative more generally, superlative most generally)

1. Popularly or widely.

   It is generally known that the Earth is round.‎

2. As a rule; usually.

   I generally have a walk in the afternoon.‎

   • 1661, John Fell, The Life of the most learned, reverend and pious Dr. H. Hammond

     During the whole time of his abode in the university he generally spent thirteen hours of the day in study; by which assiduity besides an exact dispatch of the whole course of philosophy, he read over in a manner all classic authors that are extant […]

   • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 1, in The Celebrity:

     He used to drop into my chambers once in a while to smoke, and was first-rate company. When I gave a dinner there was generally a cover laid for him. I liked the man for his own sake, and even had he promised to turn out a celebrity it would have had no weight with me.

   • 1922, Michael Arlen, chapter 3/19/2, in “Piracy”: A Romantic Chronicle of These Days:

     Ivor had acquired more than a mile of fishing rights with the house ; he was not at all a good fisherman, but one must do something ; one generally, however, banged a ball with a squash-racket against a wall.

3. Without reference to specific details.

   Generally speaking …‎

4. (obsolete) Collectively; as a whole; without omissions.
   • The Holy Bible, 2 Samuel xvii

     I counsel that all Israel be generally gathered unto thee.

Translations

popularly or widely

• Arabic: عُمُومًا ‎(ʿumūman)
• Armenian: ընդհանրապես (hy) ‎(əndhanrapes)
• Bashkir: ғөмүмән ‎(ğömümän)
• Catalan: generalment
• Finnish: yleensä (fi), tavallisesti (fi)
• French: généralement (fr), en général (fr)
• Galician: xeralmente
• German: allgemein (de), gewöhnlich (de), im Allgemeinen (de)
• Japanese: 一般に (ja) ‎(ippan ni)

• Italian: in genere, generalmente (it)
• Maltese: ġeneralment
• Polish: powszechnie (pl)
• Portuguese: geralmente (pt), em geral
• Russian: вообще́ (ru) ‎(voobščé), широко́ (ru) ‎(širokó)
• Scottish Gaelic: san fharsaingeachd
• Serbo-Croatian: opće (sh)
• Spanish: generalmente (es), por lo general
• Turkish: genellikle (tr)

as a rule; usually

• Armenian: սովորաբար (hy) ‎(sovorabar), ընդհանրապես (hy) ‎(əndhanrapes)
• Bashkir: ғәҙәттә ‎(ğäðättä)
• Bulgarian: обикновено (bg) ‎(obiknoveno)
• Catalan: generalment
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 通常 (zh) ‎(tōngcháng), 一般 (zh) ‎(yībān)

• Dutch: in het algemeen
• Esperanto: ĝenerale
• Finnish: yleensä (fi), tavallisesti (fi)
• French: généralement (fr)
• Galician: xeralmente
• German: hauptsächlich (de), überhaupt (de), üblicherweise (de)

• Greek: συνήθως (el) ‎(syníthos)
• Italian: in genere, di solito (it)
• Japanese: 一般に (ja) ‎(ippan ni)
• Latin: ferē, fermē
• Polish: zwykle (pl), zazwyczaj (pl), z reguły (pl)
• Portuguese: geralmente (pt), em geral
• Russian: обы́чно (ru) ‎(obýčno), как пра́вило (ru) ‎(kak právilo)
• Scottish Gaelic: san fharsaingeachd
• Serbo-Croatian: obično (sh)
• Spanish: generalmente (es), por lo general
• Swedish: i största allmänhet
• Turkish: çoğunlukla (tr)
• Volapük: in valem
• Walloon: å pus sovint (wa)

without reference to specific details

• Armenian: ընդհանրապես (hy) ‎(əndhanrapes)
• Bashkir: дөйөм ‎(döyöm), ғөмүмән ‎(ğömümän)
• Bulgarian: общо взето ‎(obšto vzeto)
• Finnish: yleisesti (fi)
• French: généralement (fr)
• German: allgemein (de), generell (de)
• Greek: γενικά (el) ‎(geniká)
• Irish: de ghnáth

• Italian: in generale, a grandi linee
• Japanese: 一般に (ja) ‎(ippan ni), 大まかに ‎(ōmaka ni)
• Polish: ogólnie (pl)
• Portuguese: de modo geral, em geral
• Russian: вообще́ (ru) ‎(voobščé), по большо́му счёту (ru) ‎(po bolʹšómu sčótu)
• Scottish Gaelic: san fharsaingeachd
• Serbo-Croatian: općenito (sh)
• Spanish: generalmente (es)

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: joy · green · mouth · #682: generally · ago · easily · condition