Central Intelligence Agency

American  

noun

1. CIA.

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Central Intelligence Agency British  

noun

1. See CIA

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Central Intelligence Agency Cultural  

1. An agency of the United States government, responsible for coordinating information-gathering activities outside the United States in the interest of national security. The CIA works with the Department of State and a variety of civilian and military organizations to protect American interests abroad and recommend directions for American foreign policy.

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The operations of the CIA are directed by the National Security Council.

The extreme secrecy of many of the CIA's operations has enhanced its reputation as an organization of espionage and intrigue.

Example Sentences

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Central Intelligence Agency

When Central Intelligence Agency chief John Ratcliffe paid a visit to Moscow last month, one of his messages for the Russian leader was: it is time to come back to the negotiating table.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026

Curlee, who has since resigned from the Central Intelligence Agency after 20 years of service, recently shared her experience in a first-person essay published by The Atlantic magazine.

From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026

Frances Stonor Saunders’s “The Cultural Cold War” moves beyond outright falsehoods and forgeries to reveal how the Central Intelligence Agency secretly supported a wide-ranging collection of artists and intellectuals between 1947 and 1967.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

In one U.S. example, former Central Intelligence Agency officer Kevin Mallory, a military veteran who spoke Mandarin Chinese, was convicted in 2018 of selling U.S. government secrets to China.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026

This highly classified space vehicle could take razor-sharp images and relay them via an electronic signal directly to the Central Intelligence Agency.

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