bailiff
English · Thesaurus
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bailiff¹
- /ˈbeɪlɪf/
Rhymes with -eɪlɪf
Where it comes from
From Middle English baillif, baylyf, from Anglo-Norman and Old French bailif (plural bailis), probably from Vulgar Latin *bāiulivus (“castellan”), from Latin bāiulus (“porter; steward”), whence also bail. As a translation of foreign titles, semantic loan from French bailli, Scots bailie, Dutch baljuw, etc. Mostly replaced the role of native reeve. Doublet of bailo.
noun bailiffs
- A reeve, (specifically) the chief officer executing the decisions of any English court in the period following the Norman Conquest or executing the decisions of lower courts in the late medieval and early modern period.
- A high bailiff: an officer of the county courts responsible for executing warrants and court orders, appointed by the judge and removable by the Lord Chancellor.
- A bound bailiff: a deputy bailiff charged with debt collection.
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Any law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order.
Similar: high bailiff, high-bailiff, warrant officer, beadle, catchpoll, bumbailiff, process server
- A huissier de justice or other foreign officer of the court acting as either a process server or as courtroom security.
- A king's man: any officer nominated by the English Crown.
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Synonym of hundredman: The chief officer of a hundred in medieval England.
Similar: hundredman
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The title of the mayor of certain English towns.
Similar: High-bailiff, High Bailiff, mayor
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The title of the castellan of certain royal castles in England.
Similar: castellan
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The chief justice and president of the legislature on Jersey and Guernsey in the Channel Islands.
The Bailiff of Jersey is the President of the States and acts as Speaker of the Assembly in the Westminster tradition. He is responsible for the orderly conduct of the States Assembly and its business. As Presiding Officer he has the right of speech – which is mainly exercised for ensuring the order
Similar: bailly
- The High Bailiff of the Isle of Man.
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A bailie: an alderman in certain Scottish towns.
Similar: bailie
- An appointee of the French king administering certain districts of northern France in the Middle Ages.
- A head of a district ("bailiwick") of the Knights Hospitaller; a head of one of the national associations ("tongues") of the Hospitallers' headquarters on Rhodes or Malta.
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A landvogt in the medieval German states.
Similar: landvogt
- A steward: the manager of a medieval manor charged with collecting its rents, etc.
- An overseer: a supervisor of tenant farmers, serfs, or slaves, usually as part of his role as steward (see above). Nothing was too small to receive attention, if a supervising eye could suggest improvements likely to conduce to the common welfare. Mr. Gordon Burnage, for instance, personally visited dust-bins and back premises, accompanied by a sort of village bailiff, going his round like a commanding officer d
- The foreman or overman of a mine.
- Any debt collector, regardless of his or her official status.
Bailiff²
Where it comes from
Occupational surname, from bailiff.
proper noun Bailiffs
- A surname originating as an occupation.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: bailiwick, reeve, beadle, sheriff, marshal, civil, usher, arbiter, arbitrator, writ, adjudicator, order, dance, referee, ushers, bound bailiff
Translations
Every language
noun British officer of the court
| 中文 | 執達吏 /执达吏 zhídálì, 執達主任 /执达主任 zhídá zhǔrèn |
|---|---|
| Русский | бе́йлиф bɛ́jlif |
noun equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts
| Español | alguacil |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 집행관 jiphaenggwan |
| 日本語 | 執達吏 shittatsuri |
| 中文 | 法警 fǎjǐng, 執達吏 /执达吏 zhídálì, 執達主任 /执达主任 zhídá zhǔrèn |
| हिन्दी | कारिदा kāridā |
| Português | oficial de justiça, meirinho |
| Français | huissier, huissier de justice |
| Deutsch | Gerichtsvollzieher, Büttel, Häscher |
| Русский | суде́бный исполни́тель sudébnyj ispolnítelʹ, суде́бный при́став sudébnyj prístav, при́став-исполни́тель prístav-ispolnítelʹ |
| العربية | مَأْمُور maʔmūr |
Talk about this word "bailiff." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/bailiff. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. bailiff. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/bailiff "bailiff." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/bailiff.Cite this
@misc{bailiff_2026,
title = {bailiff},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/bailiff},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
