multilateral
adjective
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Since lateral means "side", multilateral means basically "many-sided". The philosophy of multilateralism claims that the best solutions generally result when as many of the world's nations as possible are involved in discussions, and multilateralists often favor strengthening the United Nations. Today multilateralism can be seen at work in, for example, the World Health Organization, the World Trade Organization, and the International Criminal Court. But the U.S. doesn't always join the major multilateral organizations, instead often behaving as if a unilateral approach—that is, going it alone—was best for the interests of a powerful nation.
Examples of multilateral in a Sentence
Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
In mid-February, the Russian ships reached the Indonesian island of Bali for a multilateral naval exercise codenamed Komodo-2025.
—Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Apr. 2025
As the head of a far-right party, Meloni is ideologically aligned with Trump on issues including curbing migration, promoting traditional values and skepticism toward multilateral institutions.
—Colleen Barry and Josh Boak, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2025
The Trump administration has shown that binding and non-binding international agreements out of multilateral institutions directly affect industries as varied as food and beverage, energy, technology and life sciences.
—Kristen Edgreen Kaufman, Forbes.com, 16 Apr. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Multilateral.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/multilateral. Accessed 1 May. 2025.
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multilateral
adjective
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