universal

1. 1.

   (linguistics) a grammatical rule (or other linguistic feature) that is found in all languages

   Synonymslinguistic universal

   Broaderrule

   linguistics

2. 2.

   (logic) a proposition that asserts something of all members of a class

   Synonymsuniversal proposition

   Antonymsparticular

   Broaderproposition

   logic

3. 3.

   a behavioral convention or pattern characteristic of all members of a particular culture or of all human beings

   “some form of religion seems to be a human universal”

   Broaderconvention
4. 4.

   coupling that connects two rotating shafts allowing freedom of movement in all directions

   “in motor vehicles a universal joint allows the driveshaft to move up and down as the vehicle passes over bumps”

   Synonymsuniversal joint

   Broadercoupling

   Part ofdrive line

1. 1.

   of worldwide scope or applicability

   “an issue of cosmopolitan import”

   “the shrewdest political and ecumenical comment of our time”

   “universal experience”

   Synonymscosmopolitanecumenicaloecumenicalgeneralworldwideworld-wide

   Similarcomprehensive

Other forms of universal

plural

universals·

Forms marked · are formed by the regular rule rather than recorded in the source data. English keeps a few hundred irregulars and the rest follow the pattern, so the rule is right far more often than not — but it is a rule, and the mark says so.

Questions about universal

What does universal mean?

universal means "(linguistics) a grammatical rule (or other linguistic feature) that is found in all languages". That is the primary sense; the word has 7 in total, listed in full on this page.

How many syllables are in universal?

universal has 4 syllables: u-ni-ver-sal. The stress falls on "ver". In IPA it is /ˌjunəˈvɝsəl/.

What is another word for universal?

Close synonyms include linguistic universal, universal proposition, universal joint, cosmopolitan, ecumenical. Each sense on this page lists its own synonyms, because a word with several meanings rarely has one substitute that works for all of them.

What is the opposite of universal?

The recorded antonyms are particular.

Is universal a common word?

universal is banded "Common" — everyday vocabulary in speech and writing. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.

What rhymes with universal?

1 word rhymes with universal. Rhymes are matched on the phonemes from the last stressed vowel onward, which is the definition a reader has in their head.