consultant

American  

[kuhn-suhl-tnt] / kənˈsʌl tnt /

noun

• consultants
  plural

1. a person who gives professional or expert advice.

   a consultant on business methods.

2. a person who consults someone or something.

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consultant British  

/ kənˈsʌltənt /

noun

1. 1. a senior physician, esp a specialist, who is asked to confirm a diagnosis or treatment or to provide an opinion

   2. a physician or surgeon holding the highest appointment in a particular branch of medicine or surgery in a hospital

2. a specialist who gives expert advice or information

3. a person who asks advice in a consultation

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• consultancy
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• consultants
  plural

Etymology

Origin of consultant

First recorded in 1690–1700; from French or directly from Latin consultant- (stem of consultāns, present participle of consultāre “to take counsel”); see origin at consult, -ant

Explanation

A consultant is an expert in a particular field. Sometimes a business will rely on the guidance of a consultant to help change its image. How did the word consultant come about? Consult dates to the 1520s and comes from the French word consultare, meaning "take advice of." The related noun consultant, to mean someone qualified to give advice, is believed to have first appeared in an 1893 Sherlock Holmes story.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

consultant consultants

“Property-tax reductions have been in the wind in a lot of places,” said Jared Walczak, senior fellow at the Tax Foundation and a policy consultant on state tax issues.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026

There’s a Christian minister, Michael Hare, who’s also a consultant to churches experiencing those rifts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

"African borrowers have long paid a high-risk premium and standard models can miss the informal economy, domestic savings and reforms," said Jacob Oreki, a management consultant at Kenya's Strathmore University Foundation.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

The consultant said the impact of having a thrombectomy is "quite significant".

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

“You know, when I was the movement consultant at the RSC—” He pauses.

From "Better Nate Than Ever" by Tim Federle

The CoC board, which includes representatives of homeless services contractors, hired outside consultants to set up an emergency bidding process and score the applicants.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026

Prior to cutting classes and student services, he would want to look for savings in “administrative costs, consultants, outside contracts, open positions, and construction spending.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

A British Museum spokesperson said the museum was "committed to making the Bayeux Tapestry exhibition as accessible as possible" and had worked with specialist access consultants.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

Bosses are turning to bots and consultants to give younger workers the more helpful, frequent direction they say they crave.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

I find receipts for lactation and infant-sleep consultants.

From "Everything, Everything" by Nicola Yoon

Related Words

• advisor
• expert
• specialist
• veteran