Etymologically
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solicitor

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 25 October 2026 at 23:15. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • UK: /səˈlɪsɪtə/, /səˈlɪstə/[1]
  • US: /səˈlɪsɪtɚ/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English solicitour,[2][3] borrowed from Old French soliciteur, also soliciteor,[4][5][2] the agent noun of soliciter (“to disturb; to solicit; to take care of”), the source of solicit.[3][6][5] In Middle French it meant a prompter, an agent or an advocate.[3][6] The French verb is from Latin sollicitō (“to disturb, agitate; to entreat”),[6][5] from sollicitus (“anxious, troubled”), also the source of solicitous.[6] Etymonline divides the adjective into sollus (“whole, entire”) and citus (“aroused, set in motion”), the past participle of cieō (“to set in motion”).[5] The Shorter Oxford compares Late Latin sollicitator.[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

A person who urges or prompts others to act, a prime mover: 1412–20, in Lydgate's Troy Book, where Hercules is the chief "solicytour" of a journey.[4][2]

Semantic evolution

In Middle English the word also meant an agent or representative managing matters for someone else (from about 1425) and an official looking after the king's interests (1460).[4][2][5] From this came the legal senses: a senior law officer representing the Crown is recorded from 1533, in an act of Henry VIII, and the solicitor as a particular branch of the legal profession from the 1570s in Etymonline, 1584 in the OED.[4][5] Other senses grew from the verb solicit: a petitioner or intercessor (1551), and a tempter (1593–1655).[4] Johnson (1755) gave "one who petitions for another" as the first sense, quoting Othello.[8] The feminine forms solicitress (1630s) and solicitrix (1610s) were both used of women who lured others to immorality.[5] In 19th-century underworld slang a solicitor was a silk handkerchief.[9]

Timeline

  • 1412–20 – a person who urges others to act (obsolete by 1722).[4]
  • c. 1425 – an agent or representative (obsolete by 1741).[4][2]
  • 1460 – an official responsible for the king's interests.[4]
  • 1533 – a senior law officer of the Crown.[4]
  • 1551 – a petitioner or intercessor.[4]
  • 1570s – a member of a branch of the legal profession.[5]
  • 1593 – a person or thing that tempts (obsolete by 1655).[4]
  • 1888 – underworld slang, a silk handkerchief.[9]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (in Britain and some other countries) A lawyer who advises clients, draws up legal documents, prepares cases for barristers and may represent clients in the lower courts.[10][11][4]
  2. (US) An officer in charge of the legal business of a city, town or county.[10][11]
  3. A person who solicits, especially one who seeks business, trade, subscriptions or contributions: No solicitors on a door sign.[3][11][10]
  4. (obsolete) A person who urges or prompts others to act; an instigator.[4][2]
  5. (obsolete) An agent or representative acting for another.[4][2]

Word family

  • solicitorship
  • solicitor general
  • solicit
  • solicitous
  • solicitude

Usage notes

Merriam-Webster's Book of Word Histories notes that in the United States attorney and lawyer are used interchangeably, while in England one speaks of a solicitor, who advises clients and represents them in the lower courts, and a barrister, who is qualified to plead in the higher courts.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Kurath, Hans; Kuhn, Sherman M.; Lewis, Robert E., eds. (1952–2001), Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press; online edition ed. Frances McSparran et al. (2000–2018)
  3. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster's Book of Word Histories, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  8. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  9. ^ a b Green, Jonathon (2010), Green's Dictionary of Slang, London: Chambers; digital ed. 2016–, https://greensdictofslang.com
  10. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  11. ^ a b c Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House