genial

From Middle French génial, from Latin geniālis (“of or pertaining to marriage; festive, genial”), from genius (“guardian spirit”) + -ālis.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈdʒiːnɪəl/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒinjəl/, /-ni.əl/

• Audio (General American):

  (file)

• Rhymes: (Received Pronunciation) -iːnɪəl
• Hyphenation: ge‧ni‧al

genial (comparative more genial, superlative most genial)

1. Friendly and cheerful.
   • 1953 March, Baynham Honri, “Filming "The Titfield Thunderbolt"”, in Railway Magazine, page 164:

     George Relph plays the part of the Vicar of the Parish, a railway enthusiast, who becomes amateur engine driver, with Sir Godfrey Tearle (the Bishop) as his fireman, while Stanley Holloway is the genial toper who provides the cash to buy the line.

2. (especially of weather) Pleasantly mild and warm.
3. Marked by genius.
   • 1826, Julius Hare, Guesses at Truth by Two Brothers:

     Men of genius have so often attacht the highest value to their less genial works.

   • 2003, Laura Fermi, Gilberto Bernardini, Galileo and the Scientific Revolution, Courier Dover Publications, page 111:

     About fifty years later, in 1675, the Danish astronomer Ole Roemer (1644-1710) had the genial idea of using astronomical rather than terrestrial distances.

4. (archaic) Contributing to, or concerned in, propagation or production; generative; procreative; productive.
   • 1749, [John Cleland], “(Please specify the letter or volume)”, in Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure [Fanny Hill], London: […] [Thomas Parker] for G. Fenton [i.e., Fenton and Ralph Griffiths] […], →OCLC:

     The well breath'd youth, hot-mettled, and flush with genial juices, was now fairly in for making me know my driver.

   • 1667, John Milton, “Book VII”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

     the genial bed

   • 1700, [John] Dryden, Fables Ancient and Modern; […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:

     Creator Venus, genial power of love.

5. (obsolete) Belonging to one's genius or natural character; native; natural; inborn.
   • 1650, Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica: […], 2nd edition, London: […] A[braham] Miller, for Edw[ard] Dod and Nath[aniel] Ekins, […], →OCLC:

     natural incapacity and genial indisposition

From Ancient Greek γένειον (géneion, “chin”) + -al.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /dʒɪˈnʌɪəl/, /-ˈniːəl/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /d͡ʒəˈnaɪəl/, /-ˈni.əl/
• Rhymes: (General American) -aɪəl
• Hyphenation: ge‧ni‧al

genial (not comparable)

1. (anatomy) Relating to the chin; genian.

• Ealing, galine, igneal, Neglia, linage, Eaglin

Borrowed from Latin geniālis.

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [ʒə.niˈal]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [d͡ʒe.niˈal]

genial m or f (masculine and feminine plural genials)

1. genius
2. brilliant, great

• genialment

• geni
• genialitat

• “genial”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007

Shortening of earlier genialisch.

• IPA^(key): /ɡeˈni̯aːl/

• Audio (Austria):

  (file)

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aːl

genial (strong nominative masculine singular genialer, comparative genialer, superlative am genialsten)

1. genius, ingenious, genial (in the sense of genius)
2. (colloquial) excellent

   Synonyms: klasse, hervorragend

• kongenial

• “genial” in Duden online
• “genial” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

From Latin genialis.

genial (neuter singular genialt, definite singular and plural geniale)

1. ingenious, brilliant

• geni

• “genial” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

From Latin genialis.

genial (neuter singular genialt, definite singular and plural geniale)

1. ingenious, brilliant

• geni

• “genial” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

• Rhymes: (Portugal) -al, (Brazil) -aw
• Hyphenation: ge‧ni‧al

genial m or f (plural geniais)

1. genial (marked by genius)
2. genius (very clever)

• genialmente

Borrowed from French génial.

genial m or n (feminine singular genială, masculine plural geniali, feminine and neuter plural geniale)

1. (literally) ingenious, characteristic of a genius
2. (informal) great, fantastic, awesome

Borrowed from Latin geniālis (“of or relating to marriage; festive, genial”), from genius (“guardian spirit”) + -ālis.

• IPA^(key): /xeˈnjal/ [xeˈnjal]
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: ge‧nial

genial m or f (masculine and feminine plural geniales)

1. genial, pleasant
2. great, cool, neat

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:guay

3. splendid, gorgeous

   Synonym: espléndido

4. ingenious

   Synonym: ingenioso

• “genial”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024

genial (comparative genialare, superlative genialast)

1. brilliant, "genius"

   Synonym: genialisk

   en genial lösning

   a brilliant solution

• sinnrik (“ingenious”)

• genial in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• genial in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• genial in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)