- shared by, including or typical of a whole group of things; not specific
- ‘Vine fruit’ is the generic term for currants and raisins.
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- (of a product, especially a drug) not using the name of the company that made it
- The doctor offered me a choice of a branded or a generic drug.
- (disapproving) (of a film, song, story, etc.) lacking imagination and so not original
- The movie was pretty boring, with a generic storyline and emotionless characters.
Word Originlate 17th cent.: from French générique, from Latin genus, gener- ‘stock, race’.
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generic