good offices
Americanplural noun
-
influence, especially with a person in a position of power.
He got the job through the good offices of his uncle.
-
services rendered by a mediator in a dispute.
Etymology
Origin of good offices
First recorded in 1900–05
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"It is not the time now for good offices. It is now a time of war," he said.
From Reuters
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres would definitely “use all his good offices in order to help this process to find a solution to the Cyprus issue.”
From Seattle Times
“I think we would urge the secretary-general to use his good offices because it is such a crisis.”
From Seattle Times
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he used his “good offices” and asked Undersecretary-General Martin Griffiths, the head of the U.N.’s worldwide humanitarian operations, to explore the possibility of a cease-fire with Russia and Ukraine.
From Seattle Times
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres should use his good offices to find a lasting solution.
From Seattle Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
