Meaning & use
consultative support
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Meaning
noununcountableformalbusiness
Help in the form of expert advice or guidance, rather than practical work done for you.
Grammar: Uncountable: say 'consultative support', not 'a consultative support' or 'consultative supports'.
Patterns
- provide consultative support
- offer consultative support to someone
- consultative support for something
The firm provides consultative support to small businesses that are trying to grow.
She offered consultative support during the merger, but she did not manage the project herself.
We need more consultative support on legal issues before we sign the contract.
Common combinations
- provide consultative support
- Our team can provide consultative support at every stage of the process.
- consultative support services
- The company sells consultative support services to hospitals.
- offer consultative support
- They offered consultative support free of charge for the first month.
- seek consultative support
- The charity sought consultative support from an experienced accountant.
Synonyms and how they differ
- advisory support
- Very close in meaning, but 'advisory support' often suggests a more official or formal role.
- guidance
- More general and less business-specific; it can refer to help given by anyone, not just experts.
- consultancy
- Usually refers to the business or the work itself, not the ongoing help you receive.
Word family
- consult verb
- To ask an expert for advice or information.
- consultant noun
- A person whose job is to give expert advice.
- consultation noun
- A meeting or discussion to get advice or make a decision.
- consultative adjective
- Relating to giving advice or asking for opinions.
Commonly confused: consultative support or consulting?
consultative support vs consulting
As a noun, 'consulting' means the business of giving expert advice; 'consultative support' is the help itself.
Practice
The charity received ______ from a team of lawyers who explained the new rules.
Choose one answer.
'Consultative support' is uncountable, so it takes no article and no plural. 'A consultative support' and 'consultative supports' are wrong because uncountable nouns cannot be used with 'a' or in the plural.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “consultative support”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.