general staff
3
4.4
- noun
- /ˈdʒɛnərəl stæf/
- Specialized
:
estado mayor
- The general staff is responsible for developing strategies for military operations.
- chief of the general staff
At any point along the chain of command from the general staff all the way down right to the platoon.
- At any point along the chain of command from the general staff all the way down right to the platoon.
- Well, that's why he has to approve, he has to approve the the decisions of the Ukrainian general Staff.
Examples
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The minister is thus permitted to compare information from the General Staff with that of his own investigators and specialists.
Academic text (2001) -
I called you because you are his superior and you are responsible of his appointment to the general staff.
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But, I wrote a letter to his general staff... telling them... everything.
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Requires a written order signed by a member of the general staff, colonel.
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I also hope to be transferred to the general staff.
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Some officers of the general staff, I'd guess.
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Third, the best and the brightest should go to the general staff.
Academic text (1999) -
I must arrange for you to address my mapmakers and general staff.
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He's promoted me to the general staff.
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From the outset, the general staff dismissed the possibility of a political solution to either problem.
Academic text (2000)
Synonyms
1
3.8
People in the military who work in the main military office to plan and manage activities
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derived from combining 'general' (a senior military officer) with 'staff' (employees/assistants): a B1 learner who knows both words can infer it refers to the group of senior officers who assist military leadership. The composition is straightforward and parallels equivalent terms in many languages, so the overall meaning is predictable from the parts.
Etymology
The term general staff comes from the simple image of a senior officer, the general, standing with a group called the staff who were his helpers and planners. So general staff means the group of officers who help a senior leader plan and run military actions.