bailiff

American  

[bey-lif] / ˈbeɪ lɪf /

noun

1. an officer, similar to a sheriff or a sheriff's deputy, employed to execute writs and processes, make arrests, keep order in the court, etc.

2. (in Britain) a person charged with local administrative authority, or the chief magistrate in certain towns.

3. (especially in Britain) an overseer of a landed estate or farm.

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bailiff British  

/ ˈbeɪlɪf /

noun

1. the agent or steward of a landlord or landowner

2. a sheriff's officer who serves writs and summonses, makes arrests, and ensures that the sentences of the court are carried out

3. (formerly) a high official having judicial powers

4. an official having custody of prisoners appearing in court

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Other Word Forms

• bailiffship noun
• subbailiff noun
• underbailiff noun

Etymology

Origin of bailiff

1250–1300; Middle English baillif < Old French, equivalent to bail custody ( bail ¹ ) + -if -ive

Example Sentences

The department spokesperson said in an emailed statement last week that it had launched criminal and internal administrative investigations into Devoe, who worked as a bailiff at the Antelope Valley Courthouse in Lancaster.

From Los Angeles Times • May 25, 2025

Some of the people who worked with Ferguson — including his bailiff and his clerk — took the witness stand to say he was a “peaceful” person.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 10, 2025

"I couldn't get through. So because I couldn't get through and the bailiff was on the way, I was panicking even more."

From BBC • Feb. 16, 2025

Stines, elected sheriff in 2019, had previously served as a bailiff for Mullins in the southeastern Kentucky town of Whitesburg.

From Salon • Sep. 21, 2024

The bailiff, who had a daughter about Bebe’s age, took her to an anteroom and pressed a cup of lukewarm coffee into her hands.

From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng

Related Words

• constable