name, noun ·2 syllables ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   An administrative official at universities in several European countries, often with a policiary function at the time when universities had their own jurisdiction over students. historical

   "Oxford today has four bedels, representing Divinity, Law, Medicine, and Arts."

Proper Noun

1. 1
   A surname from French.

Synonyms

All synonyms

beadle

Example

More examples

"Oxford today has four bedels, representing Divinity, Law, Medicine, and Arts."

Etymology

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Medieval Latin pedellus, bedellus, bidellus, from Middle English bedel; cognate with beadle.

Etymology 2

Borrowed from French Bedel.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.