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secretary-general

American

[sek-ri-ter-ee-jen-er-uhl] / ˈsɛk rɪˌtɛr iˈdʒɛn ər əl /

noun

the head or chief administrative officer of a secretariat.

secretary-general British

noun

a chief administrative official, as of the United Nations

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

secretaries-general

plural

Etymology

Origin of secretary-general

First recorded in 1695–1705

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.

“We are trapped in a Kafkaesque cycle; expected to give back cash that does not exist,” the secretary-general wrote to members this year urging them to adjust the policy.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026

The warrant for COB secretary-general Mario Argollo is "in the hands of the general command of the Bolivian Police," Attorney General Roger Mariaca told a press conference.

From Barron's • May 18, 2026

Similarly, the UN secretary-general stated that African countries should benefit from their own resources.

From BBC • May 12, 2026

“It’s a war zone and shipping is being used as leverage. That’s the reality,” said Arsenio Dominguez, its secretary-general.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 9, 2026

He was probably the most accomplished negotiator in the ranks of the ANC, a skill he honed as secretary-general of the National Union of Mine Workers.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023