secretaries-general
Top international diplomats
Secretaries-general is the plural of secretary-general, the chief administrative officer of an organization—most notably the United Nations: The secretaries-general of the UN have come from diverse backgrounds.
The unusual plural form places the -s after the noun rather than the modifier, following the pattern of attorneys general and courts-martial.
International governmental organization
- peacekeepingPreventing or ending conflict
- multilateralismMulti-party international cooperation
- Security CouncilInternational peace oversight body
- diplomacyNegotiation between nations
Kofi Annan · international relations · member states · resolutions · treaties · mediation · humanitarian · summits
Western defense organization
- ASEANSoutheast Asian intergovernmental body
- CommonwealthAssociation of sovereign states
- Arab LeagueRegional political organization, 22 members
- African UnionContinental intergovernmental organization
leadership · appointments · tenure · succession · administration · bureaucracy · staff · management
More than one
- irregularDeviating from normal patterns
- hyphenatedLinked by a dash
- compound nounMulti-word single concept
- Norman1066 England conqueror
pluralization · titles · formal address · honorific · nomenclature · terminology · protocol · styling
United Nations
International governmental organization
- peacekeepingPreventing or ending conflict
- multilateralismMulti-party international cooperation
- Security CouncilInternational peace oversight body
Kofi Annan · diplomacy · international relations · member states · resolutions · treaties · mediation · humanitarian · summits · envoys
NATO
Western defense organization
- ASEANSoutheast Asian intergovernmental body
- CommonwealthAssociation of sovereign states
- Arab LeagueRegional political organization, 22 members
African Union · leadership · appointments · tenure · succession · administration · bureaucracy · staff · management · agenda-setting
plural
More than one
- irregularDeviating from normal patterns
- hyphenatedLinked by a dash
- compound nounMulti-word single concept
Norman · pluralization · titles · formal address · honorific · nomenclature · terminology · protocol · styling · written form
secretaries-generalsubordinates
Those ranked below
junior staff · assistants · clerks · underlings · foot soldiers
secretaries-generaloutsiders
Those not belonging
non-members · rank-and-file · backbenchers · observers · lay members
secretaries-generaldelegates
Chosen representatives or assigns
representatives · ambassadors · legislators · backbenchers · committee members
secretary, general, secret, secrete, secretion, secretive, secretively, secretiveness, secretarial