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Dictionary

Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

bailiff en · NOUN

Pronunciation

  • (Australia) audio
  • /ˈbeɪlɪf/
  • bāʹ-lĭf

Etymology

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.

Meanings

  1. (historical, qualifier:Norman term) An officer of the court ▸ 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.
  2. (UK) An officer of the court ▸ 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.
  3. (UK) An officer of the court ▸ A bound bailiff: a deputy bailiff charged with debt collection.
  4. (US) An officer of the court ▸ Any law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order.
  5. An officer of the court ▸ A huissier de justice or other foreign officer of the court acting as either a process server or as courtroom security.
  6. (obsolete) A public administrator ▸ A king's man: any officer nominated by the English Crown.
  7. (historical) A public administrator ▸ Synonym of hundredman: The chief officer of a hundred in medieval England.
  8. A public administrator ▸ The title of the mayor of certain English towns.
  9. A public administrator ▸ The title of the castellan of certain royal castles in England.
  10. A public administrator ▸ 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 orderly conduct of the proceedings – but he cannot vote. 2011 June 29, “The Bailiff of Jersey”, in States Assembly, archived from the original on 14 Sep 2015:
  11. A public administrator ▸ The High Bailiff of the Isle of Man.
  12. (obsolete) A public administrator ▸ A bailie: an alderman in certain Scottish towns.
  13. (historical) A public administrator ▸ An appointee of the French king administering certain districts of northern France in the Middle Ages.
  14. (historical) A public administrator ▸ 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.
  15. (historical) A public administrator ▸ A landvogt in the medieval German states.
  16. (historical) A private administrator, particularly ▸ A steward: the manager of a medieval manor charged with collecting its rents, etc.
  17. (historical) A private administrator, particularly ▸ 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 doing billets. 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XIX, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
  18. (historical) A private administrator, particularly ▸ The foreman or overman of a mine.
  19. (UK, slang) Any debt collector, regardless of his or her official status.

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
bailiffs Number=Plur lexicographic

Deriveds

bumbailiff · bailiffwick · water bailiff · bailiff-peer · bum bailiff · farm bailiff · bailiffry · underbailiff · bum-bailiff · under-bailiff · jury bailiff · provincial bailiff · bailiffship · subbailiff · High Bailiff · deputy high bailiff · High-bailiff · deputy bailiff · private bailiff · bailiff-errant · bailiff-haunted · Deputy High Bailiff

Hyponyms

magistrates' bailiff · ground bailiff · district court bailiff · circuit court bailiff · jury bailiff · farm bailiff · provincial bailiff · private bailiff · bumbailiff

Relateds

reeve · bailly · bailliage · bailiary · bailivate · bailiwick · bailie · baillie · bailiric · bail · bailey · bailing · bailee · bailiery · bailer

Synonyms

castellan (castellan) · overseer (medieval overseer) · High-bailiff (mayor) · High Bailiff (mayor) · jurat (medieval French magistrate) · high-bailiff (British law enforcement officer) · bumbailiff (British law enforcement officer) · high bailiff (British law enforcement officer) · capitoul (medieval French magistrate) · steward (medieval administrator) · bailly (officer of the Channel Islands) · process server (British law enforcement officer) · bailie (Scottish alderman) · consul (medieval French magistrate) · landvogt (medieval German magistrate) · hundredman · catchpoll (British law enforcement officer) · beadle (British law enforcement officer) · mayor (mayor) · warrant officer (British law enforcement officer)

Translations (84)

cs soudní exekutor (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · mk су́дски извр́шител (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · la bāiulus (a law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order) · pl komornik (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ar مَأْمُور (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · pl strażnik (a law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order) · cmn 執達吏 /执达吏 (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ru при́став-исполни́тель (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · uk судови́й викона́вець (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · sv fogde (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · izh kubjas (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · pl komornica (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ga maor (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · nl drost (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · fo fúti (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ca algutzir (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ms bailif (British officer of the court) · hu teremőr (a law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order) · cmn 執達主任 /执达主任 (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · be судо́вы выкана́ўца (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · pt meirinho (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ru суде́бный исполни́тель (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · hu teremszolga (a law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order) · pl baliw (British officer of the court) · bg съде́бен при́став (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · fi oikeudenpalvelija (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · hu poroszló (a law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order) · cmn 執達主任 /执达主任 (British officer of the court) · ko 집행관 (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · la bāiulus (British officer of the court) · hi कारिदा (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · yue 執達吏 /执达吏 (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · gd bàillidh (British officer of the court) · nl gerechtsdeurwaarder (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · hu végrehajtó (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · gl bailío (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · nl baljuw (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · gv meoir (British officer of the court) · ms بايليف (British officer of the court) · gd maor (British officer of the court) · gl godallo (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · nl drossaard (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ca agutzil (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · sk súdny exekútor (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · cmn 法警 (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · la ballivus (British officer of the court) · de Gerichtsvollzieher (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ga báille (British officer of the court) · sk exekútor (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · nl meier (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · fr huissier (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · de Büttel (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · pt oficial de justiça (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · sv tillsyningsman (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ga báille (a law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order) · yue 執達主任 /执达主任 (British officer of the court) · de Häscher (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · nl amman (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · pox amman (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · gv baylee (British officer of the court) · vec ofisiałe (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ru бе́йлиф (British officer of the court) · yue 執達吏 /执达吏 (British officer of the court) · ru суде́бный при́став (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · fi vouti (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · hy դատական կարգադրիչ (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · pl strażniczka (a law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order) · fr huissier de justice (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · yue 執達主任 /执达主任 (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · pox åberhai̯d (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · gl meiriño (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ga báille (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · pl baliw (chief justice of a Channel Island bailiwick) · cmn 執達吏 /执达吏 (British officer of the court) · hu fegyőr (a law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order) · id juru sita (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · es alguacil (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · ja 執達吏 (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · hu törvényszolga (a law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order) · la bāiulus (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · nl schout (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · nrf bailli (chief justice of a Channel Island bailiwick) · gl pertegueiro (equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts) · hu törvényszéki szolga (a law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order)