Meaning & use
advice column
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A regular section in a newspaper or magazine where readers' personal problems are answered with advice.
Grammar: Countable: you can say "an advice column" or "two advice columns".
Patterns
- write an advice column
- read an advice column
- an advice column about something
She writes an advice column for the local newspaper, answering questions about relationships and work.
Many people turn to the advice column when they need a sympathetic ear.
The advice column in this month's magazine discusses how to deal with difficult neighbors.
noununcountable
The genre or format of giving advice to readers in a publication.
Grammar: When talking about the format in general, use it without "a": "Advice column is a popular genre."
Patterns
- the world of advice column
- a master of advice column
- advice column as a genre
Advice column has a long history in American journalism.
She studied advice column as a form of popular writing.
The course covers advice column, feature writing, and investigative reporting.
Word forms
| plural | advice columns |
|---|
Common combinations
- write an advice column
- He has written an advice column for over a decade.
- read the advice column
- I always read the advice column first when I get the magazine.
- syndicated advice column
- Her syndicated advice column appears in more than 200 newspapers.
- advice column about relationships
- The advice column about relationships is very popular with young readers.
Synonyms and how they differ
- agony column
- This is a British term for a similar feature, but it often focuses on emotional problems and sounds slightly old-fashioned.
- help column
- Less common and broader; it can cover practical tips as well as personal advice.
Word family
- advice columnist noun
- The person who writes an advice column.
- advice noun
- An opinion or suggestion about what someone should do.
Commonly confused: advice column or advice columnist?
advice column vs advice columnist
An advice columnist is the person; an advice column is the piece of writing. Do not use them interchangeably.
Practice
Which sentence uses "advice column" correctly?
Choose one answer.
The correct phrase is "an advice column" because "column" is a singular countable noun and needs an article. Option 2 confuses the column with the person; option 3 uses a plural noun with "an"; option 4 omits the article.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “advice column”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.