sheriff

Meaning

Noun

1. (British) (High Sheriff) An official of a shire or county office, responsible for carrying out court orders, law enforcement and other duties.
2. (Scotland) A judge in the sheriff court, the court of a county or sheriffdom.
3. (US) A government official, usually responsible for law enforcement in their county and for administration of the county jail, sometimes an officer of the court, usually elected.

Verb

To carry out the duties of a sheriff.

Synonyms

bailiff

damselfly

dispossessor

law

marshal

marshall

police officer

👮

reeve

peace officer

district-chief officer

Translations

shérif

sheriff

Sheriff

landrechter

sceriffo

alguacil

sheriff

xèrif

xerife

Friedensrichter

Gemeindediener

Sheriff ''m'' -s

αρχικλητήρ

Amtsbote

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈʃɛɹɪf/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: shirreve

Inherited from Old English: sċīrġerēfa

In summary

From Middle English shirreve, from Old English sċīrġerēfa, corresponding to shire + reeve. There is no etymological connection to Sharif (شَرِيف (šarīf)), an Arabic title of honour that has cognates in other languages including Hindi, Urdu, Portuguese, etc.