council

American  

[koun-suhl] / ˈkaʊn səl /

noun

1. an assembly of persons summoned or convened for consultation, deliberation, or advice.

2. a body of persons specially designated or selected to act in an advisory, administrative, or legislative capacity.

   the governor's council on housing.

3. (in certain British colonies or dependencies) an executive or legislative body assisting the governor.

4. an ecclesiastical assembly for deciding matters of doctrine or discipline.

5. New Testament. the Sanhedrin or other authoritative body.

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council British  

/ ˈkaʊnsəl /

noun

1. an assembly of people meeting for discussion, consultation, etc

   an emergency council

2. a body of people elected or appointed to serve in an administrative, legislative, or advisory capacity

   a student council

3. (sometimes capital) the local governing authority of a town, county, etc

4. a meeting or the deliberation of a council

5. (modifier) of, relating to, provided for, or used by a local council

   a council chamber

   council offices

6. (modifier) provided by a local council, esp (of housing) at a subsidized rent

   a council house

   a council estate

7. an administrative or legislative assembly, esp the upper house of a state parliament in Australia

8. Christianity an assembly of bishops, theologians, and other representatives of several churches or dioceses, convened for regulating matters of doctrine or discipline

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Commonly Confused

Council, counsel, and consul are not interchangeable. Council is a noun. Its most common sense is “an assembly of persons convened for deliberation or the like.” It is generally used with a singular verb. A member of such a group is a councilor. Counsel is both noun and verb. Its most common meaning as a noun is “advice given to another”: His counsel on domestic relations is sound. A person giving such advice is a counselor. In law, counsel means “legal adviser or advisers” and can be either singular or plural. As a verb, counsel means “to advise.” The noun consul refers to the representative of a government who guards the welfare of its citizens in a foreign country.

See counsel

Other Word Forms

• subcouncil noun

Etymology

Origin of council

First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English co(u)nsile, from Anglo-French cuncil ( e ), Old French concile, from Late Latin concilium “synod, church council” ( Latin: “assembly”), probably equivalent to Latin con- con- + -cil(āre), combining form of calāre “to summon, convoke” + -ium -ium; Middle English -s- by association with Anglo-French cunseil counsel

Example Sentences

Nine in 10 pupils have been offered their first choice secondary school for September, a council said.

From BBC

The authority said it was aware of concerns being raised and was "working closely with trade unions and colleagues across the council to improve safety on the buses".

From BBC

A council's deputy leader has admitted to using an AI-generated photo in a post about other local authorities "shipping" families to the region.

From BBC

Reform county councillor Robert Potts said he had been told the council's cabinet would make a decision on the future of the road soon.

From BBC

Another ambition of the Glasgow project is to connect with five more councils outside Glasgow, share some of the successes from the city and support them to take similar action.

From BBC