Meaning & use
counselor
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Meanings
nouncountable
A trained professional who helps people talk through personal or emotional problems and make decisions.
Grammar: Countable: a counselor, two counselors.
Patterns
- a school counselor
- a marriage counselor
- see a counselor
After the breakup, she started seeing a counselor once a week.
The school counselor helped him choose which classes to take.
He works as a grief counselor at the local hospital.
nouncountableAmerican
A lawyer, especially one who speaks for a client in court.
Grammar: Countable; used especially as a title or form of address in American courts.
Patterns
- counselor for the defense
- the counselor asked
- address a judge as 'Your Honor' and a lawyer as 'Counselor'
The counselor for the defense cross-examined the witness.
'Counselor, please approach the bench,' the judge said.
She is a legal counselor who specializes in immigration cases.
nouncountable
Someone whose job is to give advice in a particular area, such as education or careers.
Grammar: Countable; often used with a noun before it to show the area.
Patterns
- a career counselor
- an admissions counselor
- a financial counselor
The admissions counselor explained the application process.
A financial counselor can help you plan for retirement.
He met with a career counselor to discuss changing jobs.
Word forms
| plural | counselors |
|---|
Common combinations
- school counselor
- The school counselor talked to the students about bullying.
- marriage counselor
- They saw a marriage counselor to improve their communication.
- grief counselor
- A grief counselor helped the family after the loss.
- see a counselor
- You should see a counselor if you feel anxious all the time.
- counselor for the defense
- The counselor for the defense argued that the evidence was weak.
Synonyms and how they differ
- adviser
- Adviser is broader and often used for someone who gives expert advice, especially in business or education, while counselor often suggests personal or emotional support.
- therapist
- Therapist is more specific to mental health treatment and usually has medical training; a counselor may focus on practical guidance rather than therapy.
- lawyer
- Lawyer is the general term; counselor is used in American courts as a formal way to address a lawyer.
Word family
- counsel noun
- Advice, especially formal or professional advice.
- counsel verb
- To give advice to someone.
- counseling noun
- The process of giving professional advice or therapy.
- counselor noun
- This word itself; note the British spelling 'counsellor'.
Commonly confused: counselor or councilor? counselor or consul?
counselor vs councilor
A councilor is an elected member of a council (a local government body), while a counselor gives advice or therapy. The spellings differ by one letter.
counselor vs consul
A consul is a government official stationed abroad to help citizens; a counselor gives personal or legal advice.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'counselor' correctly?
Choose one answer.
A counselor gives advice, often in education or mental health, so helping a student choose a college fits. Option A should be 'councilor' (a council member). Option C is wrong because a mechanic fixes cars, not a counselor. Option D is wrong because a doctor prescribes medicine.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “counselor”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.