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• international
  international

  adjective

  between or among nations; involving two or more nations.
• International
  International

  noun

  any of several international socialist organizations See Comintern First International Labour and Socialist International Second International Socialist International Trotskyist International Vienna Union

international

American  

[in-ter-nash-uh-nl, -nash-nl] / ˌɪn tərˈnæʃ ə nl, -ˈnæʃ nl /

adjective

1. between or among nations; involving two or more nations.

   international trade.

2. of or relating to two or more nations or their citizens.

   a matter of international concern.

3. pertaining to the relations between nations.

   international law.

4. having members or activities in several nations.

   an international organization.

5. transcending national boundaries or viewpoints.

   an international benefit;

   an international reputation.

   Synonyms:

   cosmopolitan, worldwide

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noun

• internationals
  plural

1. (initial capital letter) any of several international socialist or communist organizations formed in the 19th and 20th centuries.

2. (sometimes initial capital letter) a labor union having locals in two or more countries.

3. an organization, enterprise, or group, especially a major business concern, having branches, dealings, or members in several countries.

4. an employee, especially an executive, assigned to work in a foreign country or countries by a business or organization that has branches or dealings in several countries.

International ¹ British  

/ ˌɪntəˈnæʃənəl /

noun

1. any of several international socialist organizations See Comintern First International Labour and Socialist International Second International Socialist International Trotskyist International Vienna Union

2. a member of any of these organizations

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international ² British  

/ ˌɪntəˈnæʃənəl /

adjective

1. of, concerning, or involving two or more nations or nationalities

2. established by, controlling, or legislating for several nations

   an international court

   international fishing rights

3. available for use by all nations

   international waters

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noun

1. sport

   1. a contest between two national teams

   2. a member of these teams

International Cultural  

1. An international organization of workers founded by Karl Marx (see also Marx) in the 1860s. Weakened by disputes, it was dissolved in 1876, but it was succeeded by three later Internationals, which sought to spread communism throughout the world. The most effective of these was the Third International, formed by the Soviet Union in 1919 and dissolved in 1943 by Joseph Stalin.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• internationality
  noun
• noninternational
  adjective
• pseudointernational
  adjective
• quasi-international
  adjective
• uninternational
  adjective
• internationally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• internationals
  plural

Etymology

Origin of international

First recorded in 1770–80; inter- + national

Explanation

International is an adjective that describes something that involves two or more countries, like international laws that multiple countries obey, or an international flight from France to Japan. Break international into two halves to understand its meaning. The first half is the prefix inter-, which means “among,” or “between.” In the second half, you can see the word nation. Put them together and the word literally means “among or between nations.” Driving from the United States into Canada is an international road trip since you travel from on nation to another, and an international conference has guests from all over the world.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

international International internationals

“I regularly interact with international and national leaders, and I want to assure you, we have an international, a national reputation for our work on environmental concerns,” Bass said at the L.A.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026

Lord insists Shaun was not kept silent to boost international sales, it simply "seemed better that way".

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026

A G-20 statement implicitly criticizing Beijing for its overreliance on exports for growth marks a new stage in international pressure.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026

Senegal has been able to continue financing itself largely through regional financial markets but this comes at higher costs than loans from international financial institutions, development banks or governments.

From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026

The Soviets were all not just professional players, but grandmasters, the designation given to the highest-rated chess masters who have distinguished themselves in international tournaments.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

The International Monetary Fund's loan provides substantially less money than Senegal needs, but serves as a solid foundation by which the country can secure more financing.

From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026

Malek Ghazi was handed over to the Lebanese army by the International Committee of the Red Cross, while Israel says four more Lebanese civilians will be released on Friday.

From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026

EVs displaced China’s oil consumption to the tune of 1.5 million barrels a day in the second quarter, according to the International Energy Agency—1.5% of global demand, roughly France’s share.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026

Nepalis have complained that some Chinese-linked projects have languished, while others, such as Pokhara International Airport, have been mired in corruption.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

International headlines took aim at the United States, with one London newspaper taunting that "the Americans have made fools of themselves."

From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau

Their bench for the win over Aston Villa contained nine full internationals with two of those - Merino and Zubimendi - World Cup winners.

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026

Andrew played 79 Tests, 141 one-day internationals and seven T20s for England and was part of the iconic 2005 Ashes series win.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

The sides will also play three T20s starting on 3 July - at Trent Bridge, The Oval and Old Trafford - and three one-day internationals beginning on 13 July, at Southampton, Lord's and Edgbaston.

From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026

Christopher Hall, a director in the international tax group at PKF O’Connor Davies, said the tax complications for football internationals can be head-spinning.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 17, 2026

Many of the internationals understand the trauma of trying to get an American visa and that is a good place to start a friendship.”

From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Related Words

• foreign
• global
• universal