advice
Americannoun
-
an opinion or recommendation offered as a guide to action, conduct, etc..
I shall act on your advice.
- Synonyms:
- guidance, caution, warning, admonition
-
a communication, especially from a distance, containing information.
Advice from abroad informs us that the government has fallen.
Recent diplomatic advices have been ominous.
- Synonyms:
- word, intelligence
-
an official notification, especially one pertaining to a business agreement.
an overdue advice.
noun
-
recommendation as to appropriate choice of action; counsel
-
(sometimes plural) formal notification of facts, esp when communicated from a distance
Usage
What's the difference between advice and advise? Advice is a noun that means guidance about what someone should do. Advise is a verb that means to give someone advice about something. Despite their very similar spelling, advice and advise are pronounced differently. Advice rhymes with ice, while advise rhymes with prize. Because the two words are so closely related, they are often used in the same contexts, so the challenge is simply to remember which spelling to use for the noun and which spelling to use for the verb. Our advice? Remember that, unlike advise, advice never gets an s, even at the end (advice is a mass noun, so it’s never pluralized as advices). Here’s an example of advice and advise used correctly in a sentence. Example: I advise you to get some professional financial advice before you start a business. Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between advice and advise.
Related Words
Advice, counsel, recommendation, suggestion, persuasion, exhortation refer to opinions urged with more or less force as worthy bases for thought, opinion, conduct, or action. Advice is a practical recommendation as to action or conduct: advice about purchasing land. Counsel is weighty and serious advice, given after careful deliberation: counsel about one's career. Recommendation is weaker than advice and suggests an opinion that may or may not be acted upon: Do you think he'll follow my recommendation? Suggestion implies something more tentative than a recommendation: He did not expect his suggestion to be taken seriously. Persuasion suggests a stronger form of advice, urged at some length with appeals to reason, emotion, self-interest, or ideals: His persuasion changed their minds. Exhortation suggests an intensified persuasion or admonition, often in the form of a discourse or address: an impassioned exhortation.
Other Word Forms
- preadvice noun
Etymology
Origin of advice
First recorded in 1250–1300; late Middle English advise; replacing Middle English avis (with ad- ad- for a- a- 5 ), Old French a vis (taken from the phrase ce m'est a vis “that is my impression, it seems to me”), from Latin ad ( ad- ) + vīsus “looking, sight” ( visage )
Explanation
Advice is a suggestion about what to do. If you just can't decide between the pecan pie and the chocolate torte, ask the waiter for his advice. Advice comes from old French words for seeing, or view. It first meant opinion, but came to mean an opinion about what to do. If you become President, you'll gather a cabinet to give you their advice. If your doctor tells you to eat better, exercise more, and take up swimming, that's her medical advice. Someone gives you their advice, never "an advice." You can, however, ask for a "piece of advice."
Vocabulary lists containing advice
List 1
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Bronx Masquerade
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"The council considers the latest legislation and national advice regarding e-bikes to help ensure operators in Sutton observe the highest levels of compliance and safety."
From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026
Forget the politics: When it comes to personal finance, that advice is a slam dunk.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 12, 2026
Karen struggles with phone addiction, noting a psychologist’s advice on habits over willpower.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026
She was a more experienced writer who had no obvious reason to take an interest in someone who’d decided, against the advice of his high school English teacher, to do the same.
From Slate • Apr. 12, 2026
The long-dead Franklin didn’t take that editorial advice.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
