Sheriff means: (High Sheriff) An official of a shire or county office, responsible for carrying out court orders, law enforcement and other duties.. It is mainly Scottish English and may not be understood outside that context. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than risky behaviour. If your teen uses it, context will usually make the intent clear. A short, curious question about where they heard it is usually all that is needed to know whether to follow up.
sheriff
(British, except Scotland) (High Sheriff) An official of a shire or county office, responsible for carrying out court orders, law enforcement and other duties.
Seen in the wild
13 citations · last seen May 2026
Seen in the wild
BlueskyMay 2026
When Trash patel starts arresting epstein and shitler, then he can lecture our sheriff. Until then, he can STFU.
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BlueskyMay 2026
FBI Director Kash Patel called out the sheriff's investigation after Guthrie's disappearance still remains unsolved after three months.
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BlueskyMay 2026
FBI Director Kash Patel sounded off on the Pima County Sheriff's handling of the Nancy Guthrie case during an interview on "Hang out with Sean Hannity," released on Tuesday. READ MORE:
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BlueskyMay 2026
When Trash patel starts arresting epstein's clients and shitler, then he can lecture our sheriff. Until then, he can STFU.
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BlueskyMay 2026
Sheriff threatens to arrest fans and players at Sunday baseball game May 6, 1906 Stamford, Conn. 3k fans were sent home for watching baseball on a Sunday The only place Sunday baseball should be illegal is @lo…
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Definitions
UK
#1·Apr 27, 2026UK
(British, except Scotland) (High Sheriff) An official of a shire or county office, responsible for carrying out court orders, law enforcement and other duties.
Origin: , in turn , corresponding to . There is no etymological connection to Sharif (), an Arabic title of honour with cognates in other languages, including Persian, Punjabi, Bengali, Hindi, Urdu, Turkish, Spanish, Portuguese, etc. Origin information sourced from Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0).
For parents
Sheriff means: (High Sheriff) An official of a shire or county office, responsible for carrying out court orders, law enforcement and other duties.. It is mainly Scottish English and may not be understood outside that context. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than risky behaviour. If your teen uses it, context will usually make the intent clear. A short, curious question about where they heard it is usually all that is needed to know whether to follow up.
For ESL learners
sheriff means: (High Sheriff) An official of a shire or county office, responsible for carrying out court orders, law enforcement and other duties.. Register: formal, legal English. Standard in its technical domain but rare in everyday talk; gloss with a plain synonym when writing for a general audience. A common learner mistake is using the word in a register it does not fit, or assuming a single global meaning; native speakers immediately notice when slang appears in formal contexts, so always check the surrounding register before producing it yourself.
Cluster: work
Heard in the wild
“When Trash patel starts arresting epstein and shitler, then he can lecture our sheriff. Until then, he can STFU.”
— Bluesky· May 2026“FBI Director Kash Patel called out the sheriff's investigation after Guthrie's disappearance still remains unsolved after three months.”
— Bluesky· May 2026“FBI Director Kash Patel sounded off on the Pima County Sheriff's handling of the Nancy Guthrie case during an interview on "Hang out with Sean Hannity," released on Tuesday. READ MORE:”
— Bluesky· May 2026“When Trash patel starts arresting epstein's clients and shitler, then he can lecture our sheriff. Until then, he can STFU.”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Sheriff threatens to arrest fans and players at Sunday baseball game May 6, 1906 Stamford, Conn. 3k fans were sent home for watching baseball on a Sunday The only place Sunday baseball should be illegal is @loanDepotpark watching @Marlins 🤣 #BaseballandtheLaw 5-6”
— Bluesky· May 2026
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UK
#2·Apr 27, 2026UK
(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.
Heard in the wild
“The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office says a juvenile suspect is in custody following a string of vehicle break-ins reported over the past month.”
— Bluesky· May 2026“On Monday, the San Francisco Sheriff’s Office opened its new RESET Center as a jail alternative for people arrested for public drug use or intoxication, aiming to connect them with treatment services. 🔗 localnewsmatters.org/2026/05/02/s...”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Mike Bornman, LA County Sheriff candidate, 2026 primary election questionnaire Read here⬇️”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Death of young boy in Glasgow hospital could have been avoided, sheriff finds Archie Donald died at the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow on November 20 2019 after suffering from an infection.”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Sheriff Woody voice: There’s a knife in my boot!”
— Bluesky· May 2026
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UK
#3·Apr 27, 2026UK
(Scotland) A judge in the sheriff court, the court of a county or sheriffdom.
Heard in the wild
“Feed: "The BayNet" By: Calvert County Sheriff's Office on Tuesday, May 5, 2026”
— Bluesky· May 2026“WATCH: Sheriff SHOWS SHOCK PHOTO OF TRUMP Mid-Presser! Via @lukebeasleyofficial #Politics 🇺🇸 🗳️ youtu.be/Iq8EorSU9GA?...”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Eric Clapton shot the sheriff in Prague 4th May 2026”
— Bluesky· May 2026
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For specific readers
Why is this section here?
Slang is read by different audiences for very different reasons. The For parents view re-explains the term in plain, non-judgemental language so a caregiver can understand what their child means without needing the surrounding subculture. The For English learners view focuses on register (when it's safe to use), formal alternatives, and common mistakes — what a textbook won't teach you.
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UK
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Other words near "sheriff" (S)
shepShepardShepherdshepherd spidershepster timesherbetsheriff clerksheriff-deputesheriff officersheriff-substitutesheristadarSherrin
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- sheriff officer79%
(Scotland) An officer of the Scottish sheriff court, responsible for serving documents and enforcing court orders within a sheriffdom.
- sheriff-substitute67%
(Scotland) The acting sheriff in a Scottish county or city, like the sheriff-depute appointed by the Crown, but unlike the sheriff-depute forced to reside within his judicial district, and forbidden to take other employment.
- sheriff-depute66%
(Scotland, historical) The sheriff proper, so called since the abolition of the heritable jurisdictions in 1748 to distinguish him from the earlier heritable sheriff-principal, whose title is now merged into that of the Lord-Lieutenant.