legation
Americannoun
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a diplomatic minister and staff in a foreign mission.
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the official headquarters of a diplomatic minister.
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the office or position of a legate; mission.
noun
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a diplomatic mission headed by a minister
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the official residence and office of a diplomatic minister
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the act of sending forth a diplomatic envoy
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the mission or business of a diplomatic envoy
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the rank or office of a legate
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of legation
1425–75; late Middle English legacion < Latin lēgātiōn- (stem of lēgātiō ) embassy. See legate, -ion
Explanation
A legation is a smaller, slightly less important embassy. In other words, it's an office for one country's official representatives in another country. While legations were once much more popular than embassies, they mostly disappeared after World War II. In both kinds of outposts, groups from a foreign country are sent to represent their home state within a host country. Think of the Ethiopian and French embassies in Washington D.C. Legation is an Old French word that comes from the Latin legationem, "the office of an ambassador." The head of a legation was usually called a "minister."
Vocabulary lists containing legation
Selection Vocabulary 2, Unit 5
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The Executive Branch at Work, Sections 4–6
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
They first attempted to petition foreign representatives in the Legation Quarter, but police blocked their way.
From Salon • May 4, 2024
The proposed 2.7-mile bike lane would stretch from Calvert Street NW in Woodley Park to Legation Street NW in the Chevy Chase neighborhood.
From Washington Post • Apr. 20, 2023
On the evening of her death, Pamela had been ice-skating with friends in the foreigners-only Legation Quarter of Peking.
From BBC • Jan. 7, 2019
Unfit for military service, Runciman spent the war in the Balkans and the Middle East: in Sofia as press attaché to the British Legation, Jerusalem, Cairo and Istanbul.
From Economist • Sep. 8, 2016
Two of our colleagues, Princess Ghika, Roumanian Legation, and Countess de Bylandt, Dutch, are excellent musicians.
From Letters of a Diplomat's Wife 1883-1900 by Waddington, Mary King
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
