generate

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verb gen·er·ate \ ˈje-nə-ˌrāt \

Definition of generate

generated; generating

transitive verb

1 :to bring into existence: such as

a :procreate, beget

b :to originate by a vital, chemical, or physical process :produce

generate electricity

2 :to be the cause of (a situation, action, or state of mind)

these stories … generate a good deal of psychological suspense
—Atlantic

3 :to define or originate (something, such as a mathematical or linguistic set or structure) by the application of one or more rules or operations; especially :to trace out (something, such as a curve) by a moving point or to trace out (a surface) by a moving curve

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Examples of generate in a Sentence

windmills used to generate electricity
This business should generate a lot of revenue.
We hope to generate some new ideas at the meeting.
His theories have generated a great deal of interest among other scientists.
Her comments have generated a good deal of excitement.
They have been unable to generate much support for their proposals.

Recent Examples of generate from the Web

But there's little evidence that large size generates cost savings.

— the tylt, AL.com, "Should the U.S. adopt Medicare for all?," 19 July 2017
That would bring the total tax bill for fire and emergency medical services to $300.50 because the department is already receiving money from two other levies that together generate about $4.7 million annually.

— cincinnati enquirer, Cincinnati.com, "Fire, EMS levy going on Liberty Twp. ballot," 19 July 2017
More than a third of Kentucky's gross domestic product is generated here.

— joseph gerth, The Courier-Journal, "'Elitist' Louisville and Lexington prop up small-town Kentucky," 13 July 2017
The Senate in California, a state that is close to hitting its goal of generating one-third of its power from renewables by 2020, has proposed raising the target to 60% by 2030; Germany’s goal is to become 80% renewable by 2050.

— The Economist, "At what cost?Can the world thrive on 100% renewable energy?," 13 July 2017
Another fundraising opportunity will come in late August when five John Cena autographed action figures will be auctioned off to the public on eBay with 100 percent of revenue generated through the auction benefitting Make-A-Wish.

— posted jim varsallone, miamiherald, "Make-A-Wish to benefit from WWE Cena action figure at Toys‘R’Us," 12 July 2017
One of those networks belongs to an aging nuclear generating facility known as Wolf Creek -- owned by Westar Energy Inc., Great Plains Energy Inc. and Kansas Electric Power Cooperative Inc. -- on a lake shore near Burlington, Kansas.

— charles p. pierce, Esquire, "So Russia Is One of Us Now?," 7 July 2017
Specially designed to reflect heat directionally, the ESA says, the radiator will handle all energy coming from the sun as well as internally generated heat created by Bepi's moving parts.

— david grossman, Popular Mechanics, "How a Probe Will Chase Down Mercury Over 7 Years," 5 July 2017
But the conference distribution category may not solely include revenue generated from NCAA Tournament units.

— jeff greer, The Courier-Journal, "How much money would the University of Louisville have to pay back to the NCAA?," 5 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'generate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.