overgeneralizes

Draws sweeping conclusions

Overgeneralizes means to draw broad conclusions from limited evidence, applying a pattern too widely.

Someone who meets one rude New Yorker and declares all New Yorkers rude overgeneralizes.

The tendency appears in stereotyping, hasty conclusions, and flawed reasoning: The study overgeneralizes from a small sample.

You're overgeneralizing based on one bad experience.

fallacy

oversimplification

Stripping complexity unfairly

assumptionUnverified belief accepted as true
misconceptionErroneous belief or understanding
cherry-pickingChoosing only supporting examples

anecdotal · unfounded · illogical · unjustified · extrapolation

stereotype

pigeonhole

Classify too rigidly

typecastRepeatedly assigned similar roles
caricatureExaggerated comic depiction
clichéOverused, unoriginal expression

label · profile · cookie-cutter · sweeping · categorical · homogenize · one-size-fits-all · broad-brush · platitude · trope

bias

prejudice

Preformed unfavorable opinion

discriminationUnjust differential treatment
bigotryIntolerance toward differing views
intoleranceUnwillingness to accept differences

xenophobia · racism · sexism · ageism · homophobia · ethnocentrism · chauvinism · partiality · favoritism · partisanship

abstraction

reductionism

Explaining wholes through parts

oversimplifiesMakes excessively basic
distillationPurification via vaporization
condensationVapor turning to liquid

streamlining · elision · truncation · flattening · summarization · compression · abstraction · unidimensional · simplistic

Opposites

specificity of reasoning

overgeneralizesspecifies

States precisely and explicitly

particularizes · differentiates · distinguishes · qualifies · nuances

epistemic care

overgeneralizesunderstates

Presents as less important

errs on the side of caution · hedges

Family

overgeneralize, overgeneralization, overgeneralized, overgeneralizing

Familiarity: Top 500,000
Profile: Used worldwide · Timeless · Abstract · Everyday, not technical · Rated G