special counsel

noun

: counsel appointed to fill a particular need: as
a
: a federal government official appointed by the Attorney General to investigate and prosecute government corruption in cases where the Attorney General's office has a conflict of interest
b
: a federal government official appointed to protect federal employees from illegal practices by employers and especially from employer reprisal for whistleblowing

Examples of special counsel in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The nearly 70 hours of recordings, released Monday evening by the Oversight Project, a conservative watchdog group, were cited in former special counsel Robert Hur’s 2024 report on Biden’s handling of classified documents. — Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 27 July 2026 House Republicans are urging the Justice Department to launch a criminal investigation into former special counsel Jack Smith, alleging that Smith made false statements last year about his effort to gather phone records of lawmakers. — Carrie Johnson, NPR, 23 July 2026 The recordings were obtained by special counsel Robert Hur, who investigated Biden’s handling of classified documents from his time as a senator from Delaware and as Obama’s vice president. — Michael Kunzelman, Los Angeles Times, 21 July 2026 The recordings were obtained by special counsel Robert Hur, who investigated Biden's handling of classified documents from his time as a senator from Delaware and as Obama's vice president. — ABC News, 21 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for special counsel

Word History

First Known Use

1818, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of special counsel was in 1818

Rhymes for special counsel

See All Rhymes for special counsel

Browse Nearby Words

special collection
special counsel
special court
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Special counsel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/special%20counsel. Accessed 5 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Legal Definition

special counsel

noun
: counsel appointed to fill a particular need
specifically, capitalized : a government official charged with protecting employees from illegal practices by employers and especially from employer reprisal for whistleblowing
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

How long is a jiffy?

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
asap street sign
Figure Out These Acronyms ASAP You don't have to be a NASA engineer to get these...
See All