UNESCO

American  

[yoo-nes-koh] / yuˈnɛs koʊ /

noun

1. an agency of the United Nations charged with instituting and administering programs for cooperative, coordinated action by member states in education, science, and the arts.

---

UNESCO British  

/ juːˈnɛskəʊ /

acronym

1. United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization: an agency of the United Nations that sponsors programmes to promote education, communication, the arts, etc

---

Etymology

Origin of UNESCO

U(nited) N(ations) E(ducational) , S(cientific, and) C(ultural) O(rganization)

Example Sentences

UNESCO, which participated at senior level in the May 2025 Washington D.C. meeting, is expected to host a follow-up session in Paris on March 3rd, 2026, at Assistant Director-General level.

From Science Daily • Feb. 14, 2026

"It's a reflection of the way of life of we Ghanaians," said professor Osman Damba Tahidu, secretary-general of the Ghana Commission for UNESCO.

From Barron's • Jan. 9, 2026

Estonia’s membership will formally take effect after the country has presented its letter of accession to the director-general of UNESCO, the United Nations agency for educational, scientific and cultural matters, the Estonian government said.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 1, 2024

He writes a scathing review in the mid-’50s of a book by Ashley Montague, an anthropologist working for UNESCO, criticizing biological racism.

From Salon • Apr. 20, 2024

Tensions that cause wars: common statement and individual papers by a group of social scientists brought together by UNESCO.

From U.S. Copyright Renewals, 1977 July - December by Library of Congress. Copyright Office