counselling
noun · verb
Form of counsel , present participle of counsel.
Simple meaning
Assistance in the resolution of personal difficulties.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
kownslingSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈkaʊnslɪŋ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
UK
Assistance (especially from a professional) in the resolution of personal difficulties.
verb
present participle of counsel
To give advice, especially professional advice, to (somebody).
“Psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and other mental health professionals counsel clients.”
present participle of counsel
To recommend (a course of action).
“I would counsel prudence in this matter.”
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate (estimated)
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Assistance (especially from a professional) in the resolution of personal difficulties.
Used this way, counselling is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
How It’s Used
The word’s distinct uses, one example each.
Giveverb
“Psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and other mental health professionals counsel clients.”
Recommendverb
“I would counsel prudence in this matter.”
More ways to use counselling
- “She received helpful counselling sessions to cope with her anxiety.”
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
Someone who has supervisory duties at a summer camp.
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What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API (CC BY-SA 3.0). Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.