general staff

American  

noun

(used with a singular or plural verb)

1. a group of officers who are without command and whose duty is to assist high commanders in planning and carrying out orders in peace and war.

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general staff British  

noun

1. officers assigned to advise commanders in the planning and execution of military operations

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Example Sentences

France also authorized temporary access to U.S. aircraft on bases located on French soil, a French army general staff official told Reuters.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 5, 2026

And this was enough to win,” said Franz-Stefan Gady, a Vienna-based military analyst who played the Russian chief of general staff.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 5, 2026

"Some people are afraid. But if you're talking about the general staff of the NABU, most of them are very motivated," head Semen Kryvonos told AFP.

From Barron's • Nov. 12, 2025

The signatories include three former chiefs of the general staff, a former chief of the air staff and former deputy supreme allied commanders of NATO.

From Barron's • Nov. 11, 2025

The facts Oppenheimer favored disclosing publicly “are of the greatest significance to the general staff of an enemy.”

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik