alguacil

English

Noun

alguacil (plural alguacils or alguaciles)

1. Alternative form of alguazil.

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Andalusian Arabic الوَزِير (al-wazīr), from Arabic وَزِير (wazīr, “minister”). Compare visir and Italian aguzzino.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /alɡwaˈθil/ [al.ɣ̞waˈθil] (Equatorial Guinea, Spain)
• IPA^(key): /alɡwaˈsil/ [al.ɣ̞waˈsil] (Latin America, Philippines)
• Rhymes: -il
• Syllabification: al‧gua‧cil

Noun

alguacil m (plural alguaciles)

1. bailiff

   Synonym: bailío

2. sheriff

   Synonyms: sheriff, cherife

3. (Rioplatense) alternative form of aguacil

Alternative forms

• alguazil (bailiff, obsolete)

Derived terms

• aguacil

Descendants

• → Southeastern Tepehuan: orosiir
• → Tagalog: alguwasil

Further reading

• “alguacil”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025