counseling
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of counseling
Explanation
When you go for counseling, you're getting advice to help you make a decision or figure out what to do. Before getting married, you and your intended may see your minister for counseling about how to have a happy marriage. Usually counseling takes the form of talking with someone who has experience or training in specific areas where you need help. For example, if you need financial counseling, you'll find an expert in managing money. People who go to therapy with a psychologist or psychiatrist, to get help with whatever is bothering them, may also refer to that therapy as counseling. Counseling comes from the Latin root consilium, meaning "advice."
Vocabulary lists containing counseling
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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.
It also required people to get credit counseling before filing to see whether there was any way they could avoid bankruptcy.
From Salon ● Aug. 29, 2026
KFF’s Freed said the best resources are the Medicare Plan Finder, 1-800-MEDICARE and state health insurance assistance programs, known as SHIPs, which are free, independent counseling services for Medicare beneficiaries.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 28, 2026
Colombia has activated a national network to offer counseling, both online and in person, to help people cope.
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
Parents and children received dietary counseling and nutrition education from the time the children were 7 months old through early adulthood.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 31, 2026
But he has been getting counseling too and we’re working through his hurt so he can get to Closure.
From "Mockingbird" by Kathryn Erskine
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.