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Synonyms

counsel

American

[kaun-suhl] / ˈkaʊn səl /

noun

advice; opinion or instruction given in directing the judgment or conduct of another.

Synonyms:

suggestion, recommendation
interchange of opinions as to future procedure; consultation; deliberation.
Law. the advocate or advocates engaged in the direction of a cause in court; a legal adviser or counselor.

Is counsel for the defense present?

Synonyms:

barrister, solicitor, attorney, lawyer
deliberate purpose; plan; design.
Theology. one of the advisory declarations of Christ, considered by some Christians as not universally binding but as given for aid in attaining moral perfection.
Archaic. a private or secret opinion or purpose.
Obsolete. wisdom; prudence.

verb (used with object)

to give advice to; advise.
to urge the adoption of, as a course of action; recommend (a plan, policy, etc.).

He counseled patience during the crisis.

verb (used without object)

to give counsel or advice.
to get or take counsel or advice.

idioms

keep one's own counsel, to conceal one's ideas or opinions; keep silent.
take counsel, to ask for or exchange advice, ideas, or opinions; deliberate; consult.

counsel British

/ ˈkaʊnsəl /

noun

advice or guidance on conduct, behaviour, etc
discussion, esp on future procedure; consultation

to take counsel with a friend
a person whose advice or guidance is or has been sought
a barrister or group of barristers engaged in conducting cases in court and advising on legal matters

counsel for the prosecution
a policy or plan
Christianity any of the counsels of perfection or evangelical counsels , namely poverty, chastity, and obedience
excellent but unrealizable advice
private opinions or plans (esp in the phrase keep one's own counsel )
archaic wisdom; prudence

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

(tr) to give advice or guidance to
(tr; often takes a clause as object) to recommend the acceptance of (a plan, idea, etc); urge
archaic (intr) to take counsel; consult

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

counsel More Idioms

see keep one's own counsel.

Commonly Confused

See council.

See council

Synonym Usage

See advice.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of counsel

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English noun counseil, from Anglo-French cunseil, Old French conseil, concile from Latin consilium “debate, advice, advisory body, plan,” equivalent to consil-, variant stem of consulere “to apply for advice” + -ium noun suffix; verb from Anglo-French cunseiler, Old French conseillier, from Late Latin consiliāre, derivative of consilium; see consult, -ium

Explanation

When you give counsel or counsel someone, you give advice. If your neighbor is suing you because your dog keeps eating his begonias, you might seek the counsel of a dog trainer or, if that doesn't work, a lawyer. You can get professional counsel — from a minister or psychiatrist or someone else trained in counseling — or you can get counsel from anyone you trust. You can ask your stylish friend to counsel you on your hairstyle, or you could write to Dear Abby for counsel on your lovelife. Counsel is also what you call a lawyer who represents you in court. In your begonia-eating dog case, your lawyer would be counsel for the defense.

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

counsel counsels counseled counselled counseling counselling

Afterwards he mouthed "I'm good, I'm good" to his defence counsel as he left the dock.

From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026

Barrett and Justice Sam Alito pressed Colorado’s counsel, Helen Norton, on how often parish preschools refuse to enroll children with same-sex parents.

From Slate ● Nov. 4, 2026

Derek Tisler, counsel and manager for the elections and government program at the Brennan Center for Justice, said the federal government’s absence has weakened the defenses.

From Salon ● Nov. 3, 2026

Perry spent 16 seasons with the Padres, working her way up from associate general counsel.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026

Legolas went with them, for this was to be their last night in Lothlórien, and in spite of the words of Galadriel they wished to take counsel together.

From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien

Advice columnist Steffi Cao counsels a letter writer who fears she has no game.

From Slate ● Nov. 5, 2026

"This is not forever," he counsels himself on the closing track.

From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026

Speaking of which, ample Silicon Valley experience counsels skepticism about Anthropic’s plan to use some of its new fund for existing charities.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026

But 9/11 barely registers with Muslims he counsels.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

She counsels patience: it could happen to me.

From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich

Interacting with an FSB investigator, attending pretrial hearings in a cage, counseled by the Journal’s Moscow lawyers, he inches his way almost farcically toward an inevitable conviction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

Before world lightweight boxing champion Vasiliy Lomachenko returned from shoulder surgery to defend his title in 2019, ElAttrache counseled him against using his left hook because he wasn’t mentally ready to do so.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026

But he has also counseled a deliberate approach.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026

While we have counseled that speculating on earnings reports is gambling, it remains one of the most prevalent pastimes in the stock and options market.

From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026

White had counseled his men to keep their covers simple so they didn’t betray themselves.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

Trauma psychologist Gayle Sturrock, who has counselled hundreds of ballet dancers, said: "If you're told you're not good enough, you're useless, constantly… that gets hard-wired in."

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2023

With the rattled country shut down for Tisha B'av, the fast day mourning the destruction of two ancient Jewish temples in Jerusalem blamed by the sages on needless infighting, Israelis leaders counselled soul-searching.

From Reuters ● Jul. 27, 2023

In every family he’d ever counselled, his clients had accepted their own deaths.

From Slate ● Sep. 24, 2022

They meet once a month after nominations close on 31 January each year, counselled by a group of permanent advisers and other experts.

From The Guardian ● Oct. 8, 2021

They were to start at dusk, for Elrond counselled them to journey under cover of night as often as they could, until they were far from Rivendell.

From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien

As for Medicare, you can easily obtain free, unbiased counseling through your State Health Insurance Assistance Program, and you should not rely on insurance agents who are likely receiving commissions for signing up enrollees.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 3, 2026

Local governments and universities have launched programs including career counseling, vocational training and AI-related courses aimed at preparing students for a changing labor market.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

The latest version of the legislation includes an "industry transition framework" including potential job placement, training, career counseling, and financial compensation for those involved in the business.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

Ferguson, the focus is on a Washington state law that protects access to safe state-licensed youth shelters and subsidized mental healthcare counseling.

From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2026

—Now, we both know that your parents have requested this counseling for you, even though you say it’s not necessary.

From "Tears of a Tiger" by Sharon M. Draper

The former serviceman and mountain leader said many people found it easier to open up outdoors than in a traditional counselling setting.

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

The agency will support member states "from early identification and voluntary return counselling to carrying out return operations and providing reintegration assistance", Brussels said.

From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026

But he did not attend follow-up appointments or counselling.

From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026

Claire Torpey had tried traditional forms of mental health support, including counselling.

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026

Straight leaped the stranger from his horse and stroked The part diseased, thus counselling: “The flour Of wheat and milk boil quickly on a fire, And spread the mixture warm upon the tumor.”

From A Maid at King Alfred?s Court by Lucy Foster Madison

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023