ambassador

Archaic, em·bas·sa·dor

[am-bas-uh-der, -dawr]

noun

1. a diplomatic official of the highest rank, sent by one sovereign or state to another as its resident representative ambassadorextraordinaryandplenipotentiary.

2. a diplomatic official of the highest rank sent by a government to represent it on a temporary mission, as for negotiating a treaty.

3. a diplomatic official serving as permanent head of a country's mission to the United Nations or some other international organization.

4. an authorized messenger or representative. Amb., amb.

ambassador

/ æmˌbæsəˈdɔːrɪəl, æmˈbæsədə /

noun

1. short for ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary ; a diplomatic minister of the highest rank, accredited as permanent representative to another country or sovereign

2. a diplomatic minister of the highest rank sent on a special mission

3. a diplomatic minister of the first rank with treaty-signing powers

4. an ambassador with special duties who may be sent to more than one government

5. an authorized representative or messenger

Usage

The gender-neutral form is ambassador

Other Word Forms

• ambassadorial adjective
• ambassadorially adverb
• ambassadorship noun
• preambassadorial adjective
• ambassadress noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of ambassador¹

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English am-, embass(i)adour, imbassadore, from Anglo-French ambassateur, ambassaduer, from Italian ambassatore, dialectal Italian ambassadore, equivalent to ambass- stem of “to send a delegate” + -atore, -adore, from Latin -ātōrem accusative of -ātor noun-forming suffix; embassy, -ator

Word History and Origins

Origin of ambassador¹

C14: from Old French ambassadeur, from Italian ambasciator, from Old Provençal ambaisador, from ambaisa (unattested) mission, errand; see _embassy

Example Sentences

She is the brand’s ambassador for the rest of the year.

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An internal party investigation found that Qin had engaged in an extramarital affair that lasted through his tenure as Beijing’s ambassador to Washington, the Journal reported.

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The State Department’s second in command, Christopher Landau, is a former U.S. ambassador to Mexico.

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“In the same way that Netanyahu doesn’t have his extremists on board. Hamas does not have their extremists on board,” said Daniel Kurtzer, a former U.S. ambassador to both Israel and Egypt.

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"India is not in a hurry to provide diplomatic recognition to the Taliban," Rakesh Sood, India's former ambassador to Kabul, told AFP.

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