consulter

consulter — noun

1. a person who asks an expert, a reference book, or an authority for advice or inf

1.nounB2
Definition

a person who asks an expert, a reference book, or an authority for advice or information

Example

Elena is a regular consulter of the legal database for her law coursework.

consulter + of + [information source]

As a frequent consulter of doctors, Indra keeps every test result in a folder.

Common collocations
  • frequent consulter
  • regular consulter
  • first-time consulter
  • anxious consulter
Synonyms
  • advice-seeker

    more casual; emphasises the act of looking for guidance

  • inquirer

    broader; covers any kind of questioning, not only expert advice

Antonyms
  • consultant

    the expert who gives advice, not the person who asks for it

  • adviser

    the person providing guidance rather than receiving it

Grammar Patterns

consulter + of + [source]

Usage Note

Distinguish from consultant: a consulter is the person who asks for help, while a consultant is the expert who gives it.

Common Mistakes

She works as a management consulter for the firm.
She works as a management consultant for the firm.
consulter means the person seeking advice; consultant means the paid expert.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

A consulter is the person who seeks advice, while a consultant and an adviser are the people who give it. A client pays a professional such as a lawyer or accountant for services and may also be a consulter in that context, but client focuses on the business relationship rather than the act of asking. A patient sees a doctor for medical care and is a consulter of medical expertise, but patient is limited to healthcare settings. Consulter is the broadest term for anyone who consults — a student checking a dictionary is a consulter, but would never be called a patient or a client in that moment. For example, you could say 'Léa was a regular consulter of online forums before buying any gadget,' where none of the other words would fit.

consultant ↗adviser ↗client ↗patient ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • consulter of advice
  • consulter of information

Adverbs

Phrases

  • a regular consulter of
  • a first-time consulter
  • an anxious consulter

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Consulter comes from the verb consult, which entered English in the 16th century from French consulter, itself from Latin consultare meaning 'to deliberate or ask advice.' The -er ending is the common English agent suffix that turns a verb into 'a person who does that action.' While consultant developed as the professional title for paid advisers in the 19th century, consulter has remained the simpler, less common word for the person on the asking side of the exchange.