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• international
  international

  adjective

  between or among nations; involving two or more nations.
• International
  International

  noun

  any of several international socialist organizations See Comintern First International Labour and Socialist International Second International Socialist International Trotskyist International Vienna Union

international

American  

[in-ter-nash-uh-nl, -nash-nl] / ˌɪn tərˈnæʃ ə nl, -ˈnæʃ nl /

adjective

1. between or among nations; involving two or more nations.

   international trade.

2. of or relating to two or more nations or their citizens.

   a matter of international concern.

3. pertaining to the relations between nations.

   international law.

4. having members or activities in several nations.

   an international organization.

5. transcending national boundaries or viewpoints.

   an international benefit;

   an international reputation.

   Synonyms:

   cosmopolitan, worldwide

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noun

• internationals
  plural

1. (initial capital letter) any of several international socialist or communist organizations formed in the 19th and 20th centuries.

2. (sometimes initial capital letter) a labor union having locals in two or more countries.

3. an organization, enterprise, or group, especially a major business concern, having branches, dealings, or members in several countries.

4. an employee, especially an executive, assigned to work in a foreign country or countries by a business or organization that has branches or dealings in several countries.

international ¹ British  

/ ˌɪntəˈnæʃənəl /

adjective

1. of, concerning, or involving two or more nations or nationalities

2. established by, controlling, or legislating for several nations

   an international court

   international fishing rights

3. available for use by all nations

   international waters

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noun

1. sport

   1. a contest between two national teams

   2. a member of these teams

International ² British  

/ ˌɪntəˈnæʃənəl /

noun

1. any of several international socialist organizations See Comintern First International Labour and Socialist International Second International Socialist International Trotskyist International Vienna Union

2. a member of any of these organizations

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International Cultural  

1. An international organization of workers founded by Karl Marx (see also Marx) in the 1860s. Weakened by disputes, it was dissolved in 1876, but it was succeeded by three later Internationals, which sought to spread communism throughout the world. The most effective of these was the Third International, formed by the Soviet Union in 1919 and dissolved in 1943 by Joseph Stalin.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• internationality
  noun
• noninternational
  adjective
• pseudointernational
  adjective
• quasi-international
  adjective
• uninternational
  adjective
• internationally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• internationals
  plural

Etymology

Origin of international

First recorded in 1770–80; inter- + national

Explanation

International is an adjective that describes something that involves two or more countries, like international laws that multiple countries obey, or an international flight from France to Japan. Break international into two halves to understand its meaning. The first half is the prefix inter-, which means “among,” or “between.” In the second half, you can see the word nation. Put them together and the word literally means “among or between nations.” Driving from the United States into Canada is an international road trip since you travel from on nation to another, and an international conference has guests from all over the world.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

international International internationals

“When you play in such a big international competition where the spotlight is on your country and you’re participating in it, of course confidence grows,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

If you fancy a long walk, you can take the train to C and stroll over to D, but if you have a tight connection—or if you land at Dulles on almost any international flight—congratulations!

From Slate ● Aug. 18, 2026

A regular England international throughout the age groups, Hemmings had plenty of admirers as he progressed through the Nottingham Forest academy before moving to the West Midlands at the start of 2024.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

"But just calling it out will not protect the next aid worker. States must uphold international humanitarian law and use every tool to protect civilians and our colleagues," he said.

From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026

The international court determined that the children and teenagers of the Third Reich had been betrayed, deserted, and sacrificed by a party and a regime that had used them to attain power.

From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

When travelers enter Dulles International Airport, they pass through a time capsule from the Space Age.

From Slate ● Aug. 18, 2026

Sophie Adenot is set to become the first French female astronaut to venture outside the International Space Station for a spacewalk on Tuesday, accompanied by American astronaut Anil Menon.

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

The BBC has also now learnt that the world's largest sperm bank, Cryos International, has blacklisted Dogus clinic since 2016.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

Brinker International guided for another year of profitable growth, as its Chili’s chain continues to attract value-seeking diners with its Triple Dipper appetizer, burgers and ribs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026

The party on the other side of his bet against subprime mortgage bonds was the triple-A-rated insurance company AIG—American International Group, Inc. Or, rather, a unit of AIG called AIG FP.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Andrew played 79 Tests, 141 one-day internationals and seven T20s for England and was part of the iconic 2005 Ashes series win.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

The three Saturdays in between all host Wales rugby internationals.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

Christopher Hall, a director in the international tax group at PKF O’Connor Davies, said the tax complications for football internationals can be head-spinning.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 17, 2026

Historically, most of Argentina's internationals have come through private schools in the country's rugby heartlands.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

Many of the internationals understand the trauma of trying to get an American visa and that is a good place to start a friendship.”

From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Related Words

• foreign
• global
• universal