universal

Etymology

From Middle English universal, from Old French universal (modern French universel), from Latin ūniversālis.

adj

1. Of or pertaining to the universe.
2. Common to all members of a group or class.
   In Logic, the letter A is used as a symbol for the universal affirmative proposition in the general form "all x is y." 1911, 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica
3. Common to all society; worldwide.
   She achieved universal fame.
4. Unlimited; vast; infinite.
5. Useful for many purposes; all-purpose.
   universal wrench

noun

1. (philosophy) A characteristic or property that particular things have in common.
   When we examine common words, we find that, broadly speaking, proper names stand for particulars, while other substantives, adjectives, prepositions, and verbs stand for universals. 1912, Bertrand Russel, The Problems of Philosophy, Chapter 9
   We might also distinguish those expressions which are used to refer to individuals or particulars from those which are used to refer to what philosophers have called universals: e.g., to distinguish such expressions as "Everest" and "this chair" from "the number three", "the color red" and "drunkenness". 1970, John R. Searle, Speech acts
   Empiricism was similarly a response to this loss of universals—a radically contingent world with no underlying order must constantly be studied and tested—and made God himself unnecessary: divine spirit and human spirit were alien enough to each other that they could function without taking each other into account. 2021, Meghan O'Gieblyn, chapter 11, in God, Human, Animal, Machine[…]