generic and genetic differ by a single letter, buried far enough into the word to be easy to miss. generic means “relating to or common to or descriptive of all members of a genus”. genetic means “occurring among members of a family usually by heredity”. genetic is the more common of the two in everyday English.
/dʒəˈnɛɹɪk/
1.adj.relating to or common to or descriptive of all members of a genus
“the generic name”
2.adj.(of drugs) not protected by trademark
“`Acetaminophen' is the generic form of the proprietary drug `Tylenol'”
3.adj.applicable to an entire class or group
“is there a generic Asian mind?”
/dʒəˈnɛtɪk/
1.adj.occurring among members of a family usually by heredity
“an inherited disease”
2.adj.of or relating to or produced by or being a gene
“genic combinations”
3.adj.pertaining to or referring to origin
“genetic history reconstructs the origins of a literary work”
| generic | genetic | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /dʒəˈnɛɹɪk/ | /dʒəˈnɛtɪk/ |
| Said | juh-NER-ik | juh-NET-ik |
| Syllables | 3 | 3 |
| Letters | 7 | 7 |
| Parts of speech | adjective, noun | adjective |
| Senses | 5 | 4 |
| How common | Familiar | Common |
| Synonyms | none recorded | familial, hereditary, inherited |
Full entry for generic · Full entry for genetic · More comparisons