lawyers
Word family
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
'Lawyers' is the everyday word for trained workers in law and covers every kind of legal job. 'Attorneys' is the usual American English word and feels very close in meaning to 'lawyers', though it sounds slightly more formal in writing. 'Solicitors' is British English for lawyers who advise clients, prepare papers, and handle most office work, while 'barristers' is British English for lawyers who mainly speak in higher courts and wear robes. 'Counsel' is more formal and often refers to one or more lawyers acting in a specific case, especially in expressions like 'defense counsel'. For example: 'The lawyers met outside the courtroom.' 'In London, the solicitor wrote the brief and the barrister argued the case.' 'Counsel for the company asked for a delay.'
Common collocations
Etymology
'Lawyer' is an English word built from the old noun 'law', meaning a rule that people must follow, plus the ending '-yer', which once marked a person who worked with something — much like 'sawyer' for someone who saws wood. So 'lawyer' first meant simply 'a person who works with the law'. The plural 'lawyers' is the regular English plural of 'lawyer'. The base noun 'law' itself was borrowed long ago from Old Norse, where it meant something laid down or fixed.