envoy

noun

en·​voy ˈen-ˌvȯi  ˈän- 

1

a

: a minister plenipotentiary accredited to a foreign government who ranks between an ambassador and a minister resident

called also envoy extraordinary

b

: a person delegated to represent one government in its dealings with another

2

: messenger, representative

Synonyms of envoy

• ambassador
• delegate
• representative
• minister

Examples of envoy in a Sentence

the president sent the secretary of state as his personal envoy to gain the support of the country's allies

one of the hostage takers was chosen as the group's envoy for all dealings with the authorities

Recent Examples on the Web

Trump’s special envoy Witkoff will likely hear once again during his visit to Moscow that Putin will not budge on his demand that Ukraine give up Donetsk in return for peace. —Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 28 Nov. 2025

Trump announced that his special envoy Steve Witkoff would be going to Russia next week for talks with Putin. —Yuliya Talmazan, NBC news, 27 Nov. 2025

Russian envoy questions Moldova drone incident A Russian diplomat has cast doubt on claims that a drone fell on Moldovan territory, arguing the aircraft had already been downed in Ukraine days earlier. —Matthew Robinson, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Nov. 2025

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Middle East special envoy Steve Witkoff worked on the peace proposal for the past month, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. —David Zimmermann, The Washington Examiner, 25 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

French envoyé, from past participle of envoyer to send, from Old French enveier

First Known Use

1653, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

envoy

noun

en·​voy ˈen-ˌvȯi  ˈän- 

1

a

: a diplomatic representative who ranks between an ambassador and a minister

b

: a representative sent by one government to another

ambassadors and other envoys

2

: representative entry 2 sense 2, messenger