What does consol mean?
A consol is a form of British government bond, short for 'consolidated annuity', introduced in 1751 to combine various scattered government debts into a single, unified fund. Consols paid their holders a fixed annual interest payment forever, with no date on which the original capital had to be repaid — making them one of history's most famous examples of a 'perpetual' security. Because they were backed by the British state, consols became proverbial for safety, and they appear constantly in nineteenth-century novels and wills, where characters' incomes are described as arising from holdings in consols. In practice the word was used almost entirely in the plural. Although new issues of consols ceased long ago, and Britain's last outstanding consols were finally redeemed in 2015, the term survives in financial history and literature as shorthand for utterly dependable, if unglamorous, investment income.
nounA consol is a British government bond, originally issued in the 18th century as 'consolidated annuities', paying perpetual interest without a fixed repayment date. The plural 'consols' refers to such stock collectively.
- (British finance) A perpetual British government bond, originally the consolidated annuities created in 1751, paying fixed annual interest with no maturity date.
- (Usually plural) Such government securities considered collectively as an investment.
"Her great-grandfather's estate included a holding of consols that paid a modest dividend every year."
"Much of the family fortune was tied up in consols yielding three per cent a year."
"When the government redeemed the remaining consols in 2015, it ended one of the oldest continuously traded securities in the world."
This is by far the most common form; the singular 'consol' is rarely used except in technical or historical explanation.
"Interest on the consols arrived punctually every January."
The consols behind Jane Austen's plots were so safe they never matured — investors could collect interest forever and never get their principal back.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of consol
The word consol is an abbreviation of 'consolidated annuity', referring to the consolidated stock created by an Act of Parliament in 1751 under which several separate British government debts were combined into a single fund. It derives from Latin consolidare, 'to make solid or whole', from solidus, 'solid'. English cognates include consolidate, consolidation, and ultimately solid and solidarity.
Related word forms
How consol is actually used
Chiefly historical and British. The word is almost always encountered in the plural ('consols'), especially in literary and financial-historical contexts; the singular 'consol' is rare outside technical discussion. Since the final consols were redeemed by the UK government in 2015, the term now belongs mainly to historical writing.
Easily confused with consol
'Consol' is a British perpetual government bond, while 'console' is either an electronic control panel/cabinet or a verb meaning to comfort someone.