Generational
adj, slang ·5 syllables ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
- 1 Of, pertaining to, or changing over generations. not-comparable
"The generational shift Mr. Obama once embodied is, in fact, well under way, but it will not change Washington as quickly — or as harmoniously — as a lot of voters once hoped."
- 2 Exceptional; the best/worst of a generation; once-in-a-generation. informal, not-comparable
- 3 Very good/bad (through semantic bleaching or weakening of the above sense). not-comparable
"Mr Musk’s actions are worrying shareholders – a gesture he referred to as a “Roman salute” has not gone down well in Europe. In a recent survey of over 100,000 Germans, 94pc said they would never purchase a Tesla, while sales in their country were down 62pc during the first quarter of 2025 compared to the year before. … Gen Z investors on social media refer to errors like this as “a generational fumble”."
- 1 of or relating to a generation wordnet
Example
More examples"Some religious groups set up gigantic generational ships that travelled many years away from the Solar System to distant stars."
Etymology
From generation + -al.
Related phrases
More for "generational"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.