um ‧ brel ‧ la /ʌmˈbrelə/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1600-1700 ; Language: Italian ; Origin: ombrella , from Latin umbella , from umbra ; ⇨ ↑ umbrage ]
1 . an object that you use to protect yourself against rain or hot sun. It consists of a circular folding frame covered in cloth ⇨ parasol :
It started to rain, so Tricia stopped to put up her umbrella.
I spent the day on the beach, lying under a beach umbrella, reading.
2 . umbrella organization/group/agency etc an organization that includes many smaller groups
3 . umbrella term/word/title etc a word whose meaning includes many different types of a particular thing:
District nurses, health visitors, and school nurses will come under the umbrella term ‘community nursing’.
4 . (come/work etc) under the umbrella of something to be part of a larger organization or involved in the work done by it:
The international education program came under the umbrella of the State Department.
5 . the protection given by a powerful country, army, a weapons system etc:
the American nuclear umbrella over western Europe