embassy

E1M3B3A1S1S1Y4
/ˈɛmbəsi/

noun

The function or duty of an ambassador.

“The American embassy to France is located in Paris.”

OriginEnglish ambassy ← Middle French ambassee ← Old French ambascee →
CommonScrabble 14
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Meanings

nounembassy (plural embassies)

plural embassies · alternative obsolete ambassy

  1. The function or duty of an ambassador.

    The King told me, […] That I ſhould have the Character of Ambaſſador Extraordinary, and the ſame Allovvance I ſhou'd have had in Spain: Upon this Offer I made no Demurr, but immediately accepted it, and ſo my Ambaſſy vvas declar'd in May 1674.

    1683, William Temple, “Memoirs of what Pass’d in Christendom, from the War Begun 1672, to the Peace Concluded 1679. Chapter I.”, in The Works of Sir William Temple, […], volume I, London: […] J. Round, J[acob] Tonson, J. Clarke, B[enjamin] Motte, T. Wotton, S[amuel] Birt, and T[homas] Osborne, published 1731, →OCLC, page 379
  2. An organization or group of officials who permanently represent a sovereign state in a second sovereign state or with respect to an international organization such as the United Nations.

    The American embassy to France is located in Paris.

  3. A temporary mission representing a sovereign state.

    The Japanese embassy to the United States traveled to Washington, D.C., where it was received by James Buchanan, before continuing on to New York and then returning to Japan, making several stops on the way.

    1 more example

    Then go we in to know his embassy; Which I could with a ready guess declare Before the Frenchman speak a word of it.

    1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Life of Henry the Fift”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]
  4. The official residence of such a group, or of an ambassador.
  5. archaicA written account as to an embassy.

    By the various Relations, Embaſſies and Voyages of Siam that have been publiſht within theſe laſt Four Years […]

    1690, “A Relation of the Late Great Revolution in Siam, and the Driving Out of the French”, in A Full and True Relation of the Great and Wonderful Revolution That Hapned Lately in the Kingdom of Siam in the East-Indies, London: Randal Taylor, page 1

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₂ent-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₂énts?
  3. Proto-Indo-European*h₂m̥bʰí
  4. Proto-Celtic*ambi-
  5. Proto-Indo-European*h₂eǵ-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*h₂éǵeti
  7. Proto-Celtic*ageti
  8. Proto-Celtic*ambaxtos
  9. Gaulishambaxtos
  10. Old Occitanambaissada
  11. Old Italianambasciata
  12. Old Frenchambascee
  13. Middle Frenchambassee
  14. Englishambassy
  15. Englishembassy

Modern variant of obsolete ambassy, from Middle French ambassee (“mission, embassy”), from Old French ambascee (also enbassee (“message for a high official, official mission”)) from Old Italian ambasciata, from Old Occitan ambaissada (“embassy”), derived from ambaissa (“message”), from Late Latin ambactia (“service rendered”) (attested also as ambascia, from Proto-Germanic *ambahtiją (“service”), *ambahtaz (“follower, servant”), from Gaulish ambaxtos (“dependant, vassal”, literally “one who is sent around”), from Proto-Celtic *ambaxtos (“servant”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂m̥bʰi-h₂eǵ- (“drive around”); compare Latin ambactus, Old Irish amus, amsach (“mercenary, servant”), Welsh amaeth (“tenant farm”)). Doublet of ambassade.

More words from Middle French, Old French, Old Italian

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Afrikaans ambassade
  • ambassadeorganization representing a foreign state
Ancient Greek πρεσβεία
  • πρεσβεία (presbeía)organization representing a foreign state
Arabic سِفَارَة
  • سِفَارَة (sifāra)organization representing a foreign state
Bengali দূতাবাস
  • দূতাবাস (dutabaś)organization representing a foreign state
Bulgarian посо́лство, амбаса́да
  • посо́лство (posólstvo)organization representing a foreign state
  • амбаса́да (ambasáda)organization representing a foreign state
Catalan ambaixada
  • ambaixadaorganization representing a foreign state
Chinese Cantonese 大使館 /大使馆
  • 大使館 /大使馆 (daai⁶ si³ gun² / daai⁶ si⁵ gun²)organization representing a foreign state
Chinese Mandarin 大使館 /大使馆
  • 大使館 /大使馆 (dàshǐguǎn)organization representing a foreign state
Czech velvyslanectví, ambasáda
  • velvyslanectvíorganization representing a foreign state
  • ambasádaorganization representing a foreign state
Danish ambassade
  • ambassadeorganization representing a foreign state
Dutch ambassade
  • ambassadeorganization representing a foreign state
Esperanto ambasadorejo, ambasado
  • ambasadorejoorganization representing a foreign state
  • ambasadoorganization representing a foreign state
Estonian suursaatkond, saatkond
  • suursaatkondorganization representing a foreign state
  • saatkondorganization representing a foreign state
Finnish suurlähetystö
  • suurlähetystöorganization representing a foreign state
French ambassade
  • ambassadeorganization representing a foreign state
German Botschaft
  • Botschaftorganization representing a foreign state
Greek πρεσβεία
  • πρεσβεία (presveía)organization representing a foreign state
Hawaiian ʻemepake
  • ʻemepakeorganization representing a foreign state
Hebrew שַׁגְרִירוּת
  • שַׁגְרִירוּת (shagrirút)organization representing a foreign state
Hindi दूतावास, राजदूतावास
  • दूतावास (dūtāvās)organization representing a foreign state
  • राजदूतावास (rājdūtāvās)organization representing a foreign state
  • प्रतिनिधिमंडल (pratinidhimaṇḍal)organization representing a foreign state
  • सिफ़ारत (sifārat)organization representing a foreign state
  • सिफारत (siphārat)organization representing a foreign state
  • सिफ़ारतख़ाना (sifāratxānā)organization representing a foreign state
  • सिफारतखाना (siphāratkhānā)organization representing a foreign state
  • एलचीगरी (elcīgarī)organization representing a foreign state
Hungarian nagykövetség
  • nagykövetségorganization representing a foreign state
Icelandic sendiráð
  • sendiráðorganization representing a foreign state
Indonesian kedutaan besar, kedutaan
  • kedutaan besarorganization representing a foreign state
  • kedutaanorganization representing a foreign state
Irish ambasáid
  • ambasáidorganization representing a foreign state
Italian ambasciata
  • ambasciataorganization representing a foreign state
Japanese 大使館
  • 大使館 (taishikan)organization representing a foreign state
Korean 대사관
  • 대사관 (daesagwan)organization representing a foreign state
Latin lēgātio
  • lēgātioorganization representing a foreign state
Latvian vēstniecība
  • vēstniecībaorganization representing a foreign state
Lithuanian ambasada
  • ambasadaorganization representing a foreign state
Malay kedutaan
  • kedutaanorganization representing a foreign state
Māori whare māngai, kāinga māngai
  • whare māngaiorganization representing a foreign state
  • kāinga māngaiorganization representing a foreign state
Norwegian Bokmål ambassade
  • ambassadeorganization representing a foreign state
Polish ambasada
  • ambasadaorganization representing a foreign state
Portuguese embaixada
  • embaixadaorganization representing a foreign state
Romanian ambasadă
  • ambasadăorganization representing a foreign state
Russian посо́льство
  • посо́льство (posólʹstvo)organization representing a foreign state
Slovak veľvyslanectvo, ambasáda
  • veľvyslanectvoorganization representing a foreign state
  • ambasádaorganization representing a foreign state
Spanish embajada
  • embajadaorganization representing a foreign state
Swahili ubalozi
  • ubaloziorganization representing a foreign state
Swedish ambassad
  • ambassadorganization representing a foreign state
Tagalog pasuguan, embahada
  • pasuguanorganization representing a foreign state
  • embahadaorganization representing a foreign state
Tamil தூதரகம்
  • தூதரகம் (tūtarakam)organization representing a foreign state
Thai สถานทูต, สถานเอกอัครราชทูต
  • สถานทูต (sà-tǎan-tûut)organization representing a foreign state
  • สถานเอกอัครราชทูตorganization representing a foreign state
Turkish sefarethane, elçilik
  • sefarethaneorganization representing a foreign state
  • elçilikorganization representing a foreign state
  • sefaretorganization representing a foreign state
Ukrainian посо́льство, амбаса́да
  • посо́льство (posólʹstvo)organization representing a foreign state
  • амбаса́да (ambasáda)organization representing a foreign state
Urdu سِفارَت خانَہ, سِفارَت
  • سِفارَت خانَہ (sifārat xāna)organization representing a foreign state
  • سِفارَت (sifārat)organization representing a foreign state
  • ایلْچی گَری (elcī garī)organization representing a foreign state
Vietnamese tòa đại sứ, đại sứ quán
  • tòa đại sứorganization representing a foreign state
  • đại sứ quánorganization representing a foreign state
Welsh llysgenhadaeth
  • llysgenhadaethorganization representing a foreign state
Yiddish אַמבאַסאַדע
  • אַמבאַסאַדע (ambasade)organization representing a foreign state
Cite this entry
APA

embassy. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/embassy

MLA

“embassy.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/embassy. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “embassy,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/embassy.

Source: embassy on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.