adj. 1. Having a pleasant or friendly disposition or manner: a genial guest. 2. Conducive to life, growth, or comfort; mild: "the genial sunshine ... saturating his miserable body with its warmth" (Jack London). 3. Archaic Relating to or marked by genius. 4. Archaic Of or relating to marriage; nuptial. [Latin geniālis, festive, from genius, spirit of festivity; see genə- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] ge′ni·ali·ty (jē′nē-ălĭ-tē), genial·ness n. genial·ly adv. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
ge·ni·al 2 (jĭ-nīəl)
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Tweet adj. Of or relating to the chin. [From Greek geneion, chin, from genus, jaw; see genu-2 in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.