statecraft

noun

state·craft | \ ˈstāt-ˌkraft

How to pronounce statecraft (audio)

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Definition of statecraft

: the art of conducting state affairs

Examples of statecraft in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web These should also be names that Biden, his secretary of state nominee, Antony Blinken; and his national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, should make inextricable parts of American statecraft. — Star Tribune, "Dissidents first: A proposed foreign policy doctrine for the Biden administration," 26 Jan. 2021 The dramatic first steps of the Biden administration demonstrate how challenging American statecraft can be. — Walter Russell Mead, WSJ, "Biden’s Opening Salvo on Beijing," 25 Jan. 2021 Lam was the target of an American tool of statecraft and an economic pressure campaign. — Joshua Berlinger, CNN, "The Wan Chai connection: The Washington-accused drug lords, gun runners and dictators' financiers tied to one Hong Kong district," 10 Dec. 2020 Chinese officials have in the past rejected accusations by the Trump administration that Beijing uses corruption and coercion as part of its statecraft, saying the government has implemented a strict anticorruption drive. — Ian Talley, WSJ, "U.S. Sanctions Convict Who Invested in China-Backed Projects for Corruption," 9 Dec. 2020 Some of the damage inflicted under Trump — disparaging professional statecraft, dismantling interagency systems and filling positions with inexperienced friends — may take months if not years to repair. — Tracy Wilkinson, Los Angeles Times, "Biden looks to rehire diplomats and others fired by Trump to rebuild the State Department," 19 Nov. 2020 To others, the book was refreshingly honest, a survey of the reality of statecraft as it was actually practiced by rulers throughout history. — National Geographic, "Machiavelli exposed the brutal truth about politics in a 'tell-all' treatise," 22 Oct. 2020 The Dutch Calvinist thinker Johannes Althusias in 1603 wrote a manual on statecraft promoting setting up communities through compacts. — Stephen B. Young, Star Tribune, "The 'ism' that founded America wasn't racism, but Calvinism," 21 Aug. 2020 Alexander Hamilton believed pork-barrel spending to be indispensable to effective statecraft. — Cameron Hilditch, National Review, "Queen Kamala’s Imperial Aspirations," 18 Aug. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'statecraft.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

27 Feb 2021

Cite this Entry

“Statecraft.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/statecraft. Accessed 6 Mar. 2021.

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More Definitions for statecraft

statecraft

noun

English Language Learners Definition of statecraft

formal : the art or skill of conducting government affairs

See the full definition for statecraft in the English Language Learners Dictionary

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