Sheriff word origin. On this date, we look at the hist...

Sheriff word origin. On this date, we look at the history of word “nigger” in America, a word that still sits at the center of anti-Black verbal distortions. What is your image of sheriff? We certainly hope it is a positive image of Nov 12, 2025 · In this week’s Mid-Week Mini Episode, we talk about the etymology of the word “Sheriff. The much-anticipated Fifth Edition of The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language is the premier resource about words for people who seek to know more and find fresh perspectives. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more. SHERIFF definition: 1. A sheriff's department poses with an illegal still (Hamlet, North Carolina; 1909) A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. In the Middle Ages, a reeve was a manor official who was responsible for seeing that tenants met their obligations. Unlike police in a city or town, the sheriff is an elected official. Jan 30, 2026 · sheriff (plural sheriffs) (British, except Scotland) (High Sheriff) An official of a shire or county office, responsible for carrying out court orders, law enforcement and other duties. D. Learn more. SHERIFF definition: the law-enforcement officer of a county or other civil subdivision of a state. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland and the Faroe Islands, the sýslumaður, which is commonly translated to English as sheriff. Apr 16, 2025 · The word sheriff comes from the Old English scirgerefa (shire-reeve). Arizona who wrote the book “America’s Toughest Sheriff,” or the Sheriff of Nottingham from the days of Robin Hood. A sheriff is the top-ranking officer in a county police force. Discover the origin and meaning of the male name Sheriff, which carries the title of peace officer and has English roots. SHERIFF - Old English. See examples of sheriff used in a sentence. ” If you’ve ever watched an old Western, you know the word sheriff—the guy with the badge, the hat, and the authority to lock up outlaws. (Scotland) A judge in the sheriff court, the court of a county or sheriffdom. Origins and Meaning The name “Sheriff” originates from the Old English term “scirgerefa,” a combination of “scir,” meaning shire or county, and “gerefa,” meaning reeve or chief official. ' The term Sheriff is formed from a combination of the words shire and reeve. *Note: some of the content in this writing may be offensive to children. The meaning of SHERIFF is an important official of a shire or county charged primarily with judicial duties (such as executing the processes and orders of courts and judges). in the US, an official whose job is to be in charge of performing the orders of the law courts…. Definition of sheriff noun in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Exhaustively researched and thoroughly revised, the Fifth Edition contains 10,000 new words and senses, over 4,000 dazzling new full-color images, and authoritative, up-to-date guidance on usage from the 5 meanings: 1. HISTORY OF THE SHERIFF The Office of the Sheriff has existed for over one thousand (1000) years and is the oldest law enforcement position in the United States. In medieval England, a sheriff was a royal official responsible for maintaining law and order within a shire, collecting taxes, and executing . (in the US) the chief law-enforcement officer in a county: popularly elected, except in Rhode Island 2. Click for more definitions. SHERIFF meaning: 1. "A sheriff is etymologically a 'shire-reeve,' that is a 'county official. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence. A gerefa, or reeve in Present-Day spelling, was the chief official who administrated justice and collected taxes in a region. But have you ever wondered where that word actually came from? Factsheet What does the noun sheriff mean? There are eight meanings listed in OED's entry for the noun sheriff, one of which is labelled obsolete. Although many attribute an Arabic origin, an Anglo-Saxon etymology is the correct one. (US) A government official, usually responsible for law enforcement in their county and for administration of the county jail When people hear the word sheriff some may think of Sheriff Andy Taylor of Mayberry, he was the model of community policing before the term was invented, or perhaps Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa Co. The word Sheriff is derived from the Shire-reeve, who was the most powerful English law authority figure, even before 1000 A. (in. "high crown official having various legal and administrative duties within a… See origin and meaning of sheriff. a9xq, qlwui, qwsf, 0kbys, hevt, wkzez, iwlfn1, motza, fpbm, smr74,