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counsel

Etymology and origin of the English word counsel

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
before 1225
Borrowed from
Old French counseil
Ultimate origin
Latin (consilium)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈkaʊn.səl/[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English counseil, borrowed from Old French counseil (“advice, counsel; deliberation”), conseil,[2][3][4] from Latin consilium (“plan, opinion; consultation; a deliberating body”), from com- (“together”) and a root variously explained:[3][5][4] Etymonline gives that of calāre (“to announce, summon”), Hoad a base *sal- as in consul and consult, and MWU compares Greek helein, to take.[3][5][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Advice or instruction given: before 1225 in the OED, probably before 1200 in Barnhart, about 1200 in Etymonline.[6][2][3]

Semantic evolution

Consultation, mutual exchange of opinions, is from about 1290–1300.[6][3] Judgement or prudence is from 1297.[6] The verb, to give advice, is from about 1300.[3] A body of legal advisers is from the 14th century, and a lawyer who gives legal counsel is attested in the late 14th century;[5][3] a legal advocate in court is from the 18th century.[5] Keep one's own counsel, to keep one's plans secret, preserves the sense of a private purpose.[7][8]

Timeline

  • before 1225 – advice.[6]
  • c. 1290 – consultation.[6]
  • c. 1300 – to advise (verb).[3]
  • late 14th century – a lawyer.[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. Advice, especially when given formally.
  2. A lawyer or lawyers conducting a case; a barrister.
  3. (archaic) Consultation or deliberation.

Verb

  1. To give advice to; to advise.
  2. To give professional help with personal or psychological problems.

Word family

  • counselee
  • miscounsel
  • precounsel
  • uncounselled

Usage notes

NODE compares counsel with council, an assembly, from a different Latin word.[9] In the sense lawyer the plural is unchanged: counsel for the defence.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b c d Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  9. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Counsel.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/counsel. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·