multilateral

adjective

mul·ti·lat·er·al | \ ˌməl-tē-ˈla-t(ə-)rəl

, -ˌtī-\

Definition of multilateral

1 : having many sides

2 : involving or participated in by more than two nations or parties multilateral agreements

Other Words from multilateral Did You Know? More Example Sentences Learn More about multilateral

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Other Words from multilateral

multilateralism \ ˌməl-tē-ˈla-t(ə-)rə-ˌli-zəm

, -ˌtī- \ noun

multilateralist \ ˌməl-tē-ˈla-t(ə-)rə-list

, -ˌtī- \ noun

multilaterally adverb

Did You Know?

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

Recent Examples on the Web

At least Diddy and Leonardo DiCaprio don’t host multilateral meetings of Western heads of state. — Rich Lowry, National Review, "The Amazon Scam," 30 Aug. 2019 In several other countries, multilateral lending was the main source of debt. — Julia Hollingsworth, CNN, "Why China is challenging Australia for influence over the Pacific Islands," 22 July 2019 However misdirected the current ire, the multilateral system for restraining currency manipulation is indeed toothless. — The Economist, "America considers retaliating against currency manipulation," 27 July 2019 That omission was clearly deliberate, given the president’s disdain for almost any multilateral organization. — Trudy Rubin, The Mercury News, "Rubin: Trump’s nationalism vs. Macron’s plea for a strong alliance," 11 June 2019 At the same time, Russia also has expressed an interest in multilateral arms control deals, according to one of the administration officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the issue ahead of the talks Wednesday in Geneva. — Washington Post, "US, Russian delegations to discuss arms control in Geneva," 17 July 2019 Tensions between the United States and Iran have been rising for more than a year, beginning when Trump unilaterally withdrew from a multilateral deal with Iran aimed at limiting its nuclear program. — John Fritze, USA TODAY, "Donald Trump threatens 'overwhelming force' against Iran if it attacks 'anything American'," 25 June 2019 Among the participants is India, a key economic partner of Tehran, and China, which—along with Russia, Germany, the U.K. and France—is party to the 2015 multilateral nuclear deal with Iran that the U.S. exited last year. — Sune Engel Rasmussen, WSJ, "Iran Seeks to Build International Alliance Against U.S. Pressure," 18 June 2019 If, however, Iran ignores this array of international sea power and bombs a ship, blasts a U.S. drone, or otherwise misbehaves, Trump already will have in place — just a few miles away — potential partners for a multilateral reprisal. — Deroy Murdock, National Review, "Trump Should Assemble a Multinational Naval Convoy," 28 June 2019

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