secretary-general

noun

sec·​re·​tary-gen·​er·​al ˈse-krə-ˌter-ē-ˈjen-rəl 

-ˈje-nə-rəl

plural secretaries-general

: a principal administrative officer

secretary-general of the United Nations

Examples of secretary-general in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Sylvain Guillebaud, deputy secretary-general of the CEF, said the pope's visit is expected to cost the Catholic Church 27 million euros ($31 million). — ABC News, 8 Sep. 2026

Among those on the visit was Carla Barnett, secretary-general of the Caribbean Community. — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 4 Sep. 2026

An assistant secretary-general at the United Nations on Tuesday warned that millions of people in the Himalayan region were at risk from glacial floods, with fears that entire riverbanks might become effectively uninhabitable. — Sam Meredith,evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 2 Sep. 2026

Indrika Ratwatte, the acting assistant secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, told the Security Council that the Kenscoff attack forced more than 2,600 people to flee their homes, many for the second or third time. — Evens Sanon, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1701, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for secretary-general

• general

Kids Definition

secretary-general

noun

plural secretaries-general

: a principal officer of administration

secretary-general of the United Nations