foreign relations

American  

noun

1. (used with a plural verb) the dealings and relationships between nations.

2. (used with a singular verb) the field of foreign affairs.

   an expert in foreign relations.

3. (used with a singular verb) the quality or character of foreign affairs as a consequence of foreign policy.

   a deterioration in their foreign relations.

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Etymology

Origin of foreign relations

An Americanism dating back to 1800–10

Example Sentences

Sen. Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, condemned the reported strike Tuesday in a post on X.

From The Wall Street Journal

“They’re treating them like prisoners,” said Muhammad Shehada, a Gaza expert at the European Council on Foreign Relations.

From Los Angeles Times

“The U.S. was trying to disengage from Europe at the end of the war,” said Benn Steil, director of international economics at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

From The Wall Street Journal

China held some $3.35 trillion in officially declared foreign-currency reserves as of November, but Brad Setser, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, estimated in 2023 that China’s total foreign assets were closer to $6 trillion when including institutions that report to the central government.

From The Wall Street Journal

In 1960, it was one of the founding members of OPEC, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries; in 1973, OPEC’s oil embargo, which pushed prices to a record, gave it the highest per-capita income in Latin America, according to Diana Roy and Amelia Cheatham of the Council on Foreign Relations.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• diplomacy