adviser
This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 17 October 2026 at 13:08. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Pronunciation
- IPA: UK /ədˈvaɪ.zə/, US /ədˈvaɪ.zɚ/[1]
Etymology
It is formed from advise and -er.[2] The Latinate spelling advisor may be a back-formation from advisory.[2]
Earliest recorded meaning
One who gives advice: about 1536 in Merriam-Webster, 1611 in the OED, the 1610s in Etymonline.[3][4][2]
Semantic evolution
A dispatch boat was an adviser in 1658–9, a sense now obsolete.[4] One who sends notice of something is from 1854.[4] With a capital, an agent of the British government advising a ruler is from 1878.[4] A senior member of a university assigned to guide a student, chiefly American, is from 1887,[4][2] and a soldier sent to help a foreign government or army from 1915.[4][2]
Timeline
- c. 1536 – adviser.[3]
- 1611 – one who advises.[4]
- 1658–9 – a dispatch boat (obsolete).[4]
- 1887 – a student's adviser (US).[4][2]
- 1915 – a military adviser.[4][2]
Modern meaning
Noun
- A person or firm that gives advice, especially professionally; a counsellor.
- An educator who advises students on academic and personal matters.
- (British) A subject specialist who advises the heads of schools.
- A soldier sent to advise or help the government or army of another country, chiefly in the plural.
Word family
- advisership
Related words
Usage notes
It is also spelled advisor.[5]
References
- ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
- ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins