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US President Trump today referred to the need to take measures against "M-15" and other forms of "transnational crime."

Online search defines "transnational:"

trans·na·tion·al [tran(t)sˈnaSHnəl, tranzˈnaSHnəl]

ADJECTIVE extending or operating across national boundaries. "transnational advertising agencies" NOUN a large company operating internationally; a multinational.

I know that the "trans-" prefix is indicative of change, but when can we tell whether it is more appropriate to write "international" or "transnational?" Is there a reason the U.S. president did not refer to "international crime?" Does "transnational" imply a change or shift in the location of the subject, as the "trans-" prefix usually suggests?

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  • I suspect that in this case the choice was to imply "crossing a or multiple national boundary" in that the group in question has footprints in 2 or more countries, whereas international implies a far more extensive scope.
    – GerardFalla
    Commented Mar 19, 2019 at 20:20

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According to Wikipedia entry 'Transnational organization', transnational refers to international organizations that TRANSCEND the idea of a nation-state. Thus, the word emphasizes that national boundaries are not relevant, which was what Trump implied, how crime organization ignores national boundary when it comes to their operations.

International, however, implies official cooperation between countries, and respecting the law of the nations involved.

Hope that helps.

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