Great Seal of the United States
1
5.3
- noun
- Formal
:
Gran Sello de los Estados Unidos
- Every official treaty signed by the government is marked with the Great Seal of the United States.
Examples
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A small transmitter was put into a carved replica of the Great Seal of the United States presented to the U.S. ambassador by Soviet schoolchildren.
Academic text (2003) -
In 1935, the Great Seal of the United States was changed to show the Star of David above the American eagle.
Blog text (32) -
The Great Seal of the United States carries the motto E pluribus unum.
Academic text (1990) -
This is the original Emancipation Proclamation, which was affixed with the Great Seal of the United States and Lincoln's signature on January 1, 1863.
Blog text (15) -
The document was authenticated with the Great Seal of the United States to ensure its legitimacy.
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The Great Seal of the United States serves as a symbol of national authority and sovereignty.
Synonyms
106
4.2
An official mark that shows a document is real
2
7.5
An official stamp used by a government to show that a document is genuine
1
9.9
A mark used to show a document is real and from an important person
Surface Forms
Morphology
great + seal + of + the + united + state
The phrase is compositionally transparent: 'seal' (an official stamp) combined with 'of the United States' (belonging to the U.S.) and 'great' (important or official) yields the meaning of an official national seal. This follows a common noun + of + nation pattern found cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents can reliably infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Great Seal of the United States was made soon after the country began as a special stamp used on important papers. Its picture, a bald eagle holding arrows and an olive branch, was pressed onto documents to show they came from the government, so today the seal means the 'official' mark that proves a government document is real.