councillor

IPA/ˈkaʊnsələ(r)/
IPA/ˈkaʊnsələr/

councillor — noun

  • councillorsingular
  • councillorsplural

1. A person who has been chosen by voters to serve on a local council, representing

1.nounB2
Definition

A person who has been chosen by voters to serve on a local council, representing the people in their area and helping to make decisions about community services and policies.

Example

Apinya was elected as a councillor for the Northwood district in last year's local election.

elected as councillor for [district]

The councillor asked the transport department to add more bus stops near the school.

Common collocations
  • city councillor
  • town councillor
  • county councillor
  • local councillor
  • elect a councillor
  • serve as a councillor
Synonyms
  • alderman

    A more specific historical term used in some UK cities and US municipalities; less common in modern everyday use.

  • representative

    Broader term that can refer to any elected official at local, regional, or national level; less precise than 'councillor'.

  • board member

    Refers to someone on the governing board of an organisation or company, not necessarily elected by the public.

Usage Note

Countable noun. Often appears with a preceding modifier such as 'city', 'town', 'county', or 'local'. When used as a title before a name, it is usually capitalised: Councillor Bilal. The American English spelling is councilor (one 'l').

Common Mistakes

She works as a counselor for the city government.
She works as a councillor for the city government.
'councillor' is an elected official on a council; 'counsellor/counselor' is someone who gives advice, such as a guidance counsellor.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Councillor, alderman, representative, and delegate all refer to people acting on behalf of others, but they differ in scope and context. A councillor is specifically an elected member of a local government council — the most common term in British and Australian English for city, town, or county lawmakers. Alderman is a historical variant still used in some cities (e.g. London, Chicago), but it sounds old-fashioned in everyday conversation. Representative is much broader: it can describe anyone elected to speak for a group, from a local councillor all the way to a member of national parliament. Delegate implies being sent by a group to a meeting or conference, often temporarily and not necessarily through a public election. For example: 'The councillor helped residents fix a broken streetlight,' whereas 'The delegate from our neighbourhood attended the housing summit.'

councillor ↗alderman ↗representative ↗delegate ↗

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

The word 'councillor' comes from Old French 'conseillier' (advisor), which itself traces back to Latin 'consiliarius' (adviser), from 'consilium' (plan, advice, deliberation). The spelling with a double 'l' reflects the connection to 'council', while the American variant 'councilor' uses a single 'l'.