MEANING
Carried out or decided by one party without the agreement or joint participation of others.
Use it for
independent state action; one-sided changes; lack of joint agreementShow who decided and whether others shared authority.
Words that belong together
- unilateral action
- unilateral decision
- unilateral withdrawal
On the page
The unilateral tariff increase surprised the state's trading partners.
The board made a unilateral change to the payment schedule.
A unilateral withdrawal ended participation but did not automatically dissolve the treaty.
Nearby words
Opposite meanings
Related words
Word forms
- Base
- unilateral
Usage notes
Primary category: academic. In diplomacy, unilateral action can be taken despite consultation; the key is one-sided decision or execution. It does not automatically mean unlawful or hostile. Normally non-gradable in this sense; comparison requires a specific contextual scale. Derived family (not inflections): unilateralism, unilaterally.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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