General Assembly

American  

noun

1. the legislature in some states of the U.S.

2. the main deliberative body of the United Nations, composed of delegations from member nations.

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General Assembly British  

noun

1.  GA.  the deliberative assembly of the United Nations

2. the former name for the parliament of New Zealand

3. the supreme governing body of certain religious denominations, esp of the Presbyterian Church

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Etymology

Origin of General Assembly

An Americanism dating back to 1610–20

Example Sentences

A problem looms: Under U.N. rules, members lose voting rights in the General Assembly once their arrears top two years of assessed dues, a situation the U.S. could face as early as 2027.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026

The UN General Assembly on Wednesday will weigh a draft resolution underlining states' obligations to combat climate change, a long-awaited move that has been scaled back under pressure from major greenhouse gas emitters.

From Barron's • May 18, 2026

According to Lopes, Washington has adopted a more pragmatic and less ideological approach to the bilateral relationship since September - when the two presidents met at the UN General Assembly in New York .

From BBC • May 7, 2026

State Sen. Lisa Grafstein, a longtime civil rights lawyer, said the state bar is worried: “If you push back against the General Assembly, what’s the next thing that’s going to happen to you?”

From Slate • Apr. 10, 2026

He’d been elected to the General Assembly in Hartford, but he’d been pushed out of it by the Patriots for being a Tory.

From "My Brother Sam is Dead" by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier