ambassador

noun

am·​bas·​sa·​dor am-ˈba-sə-dər 

əm-,

im-,

-ˌdȯr,

-ˈbas-dər

1

: an official envoy

especially : a diplomatic agent of the highest rank accredited to a foreign government or sovereign and appointed for a special and often temporary diplomatic assignment as the resident representative abroad

She's the American ambassador to Italy.

2

a

: an authorized representative or messenger

b

: an unofficial representative

traveling abroad as ambassadors of goodwill

ambassadorial

am-ˌba-sə-ˈdȯr-ē-əl 

əm-

im-

adjective

ambassadorship

am-ˈba-sə-dər-ˌship 

əm-

im-

-ˌdȯr-

-ˈbas-dər-

noun

Synonyms of ambassador

• envoy
• representative
• delegate
• minister

Examples of ambassador in a Sentence

Embassy officials met with the ambassador.

a beloved entertainer who has often been sent abroad by the president as his country's goodwill ambassador

Recent Examples on the Web

The Pandora ambassador accessorized her look with jewelry pieces from the Danish jewelry manufacturer and retailer. —Julia Teti, Footwear News, 5 Nov. 2025

Long known for his charitable work with UNICEF, Beckham signed on as ambassador for the King’s Foundation last year in a campaign to inspire young people into careers in horticulture. —Anna Lazarus Caplan, PEOPLE, 4 Nov. 2025

Beckham’s philanthropy — generally a prerequisite for getting an honor from the royals — includes work with Unicef as well as the King’s Foundation, a charity working to educate young people about the importance of nature, of which Beckham became an ambassador in 2024. —Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 4 Nov. 2025

As for his charitable work, Beckham has worked closely with organizations fighting malaria and has been serving as an ambassador for UNICEF since 2005. —Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 4 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English ambassatour, ambassiatour "diplomatic emissary, envoy, messenger," borrowed from Anglo-French & Medieval Latin; Anglo-French ambaxiatour, ambassatour (continental Middle French also embassator, ambassadeur), borrowed from Medieval Latin ambasciātor, ambassātor, from ambiasciāre "to communicate, send a message, send an envoy" (derivative of Late Latin ambascia, ambassia "mission, errand, task, journey") + Latin -tor, agent suffix — more at embassy

Note: The current form of the word with -d-, which becomes common in early Modern English, is dependent on Middle French (and French) ambassadeur, borrowed from Italian ambasciatore, probably borrowed from Old Occitan ambayssador. Regarding the variation between initial am- and em-, see note at embassy. As the Oxford English Dictionary, third edition, remarks, the form embassador was frequent in early Modern English, up to ca. 1700, and sporadic thereafter; the prevalence of the am- form is probably due at least in part to the influence of French ambassadeur. Though ambassador was apparently always more common in American English, Noah Webster preferred embassador, as he notes at the entry for ambassador in An American Dictionary of the English Language (1828): "This is the more common orthography; but good authors write also embassador; and as the orthography of embassy is established, it would be better to write embassador."

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing ambassador

• ambassador-at-large
• goodwill ambassador

Rhymes for ambassador

• embassador

Kids Definition

ambassador

noun

am·​bas·​sa·​dor am-ˈbas-əd-ər 

əm-,

-ˈbas-ə-dȯ(ə)r

1

: a person sent as the chief representative of his or her own government in another country

2

: an official representative or messenger

ambassadorial

(ˌ)am-ˌbas-ə-ˈdōr-ē-əl 

-ˌdȯr-

əm-

adjective

ambassadorship

am-ˈbas-əd-ər-ˌship 

əm-

noun