What does controul mean?
"Controul" is an obsolete spelling variant of the modern English word "control", encountered today almost exclusively in historical documents, legal records, and older printed editions from Britain. Like "control", it denoted the power to direct, regulate, or restrain something — the authority a ruler held over subjects, a committee over funds, or a commander over troops — as well as the act of exercising such authority. The spelling arose through French influence: the word traces back to the phrase "contre-rolle", meaning a counter-register kept to verify an official roll, which passed into English in late Middle French-derived forms. During the 17th and 18th centuries both spellings circulated side by side in British texts, with "controul" appearing in works by writers such as Samuel Johnson before gradually falling out of use in favour of the shorter, Latinate-looking "control". For modern readers it functions mainly as a curiosity of orthographic history rather than a living vocabulary item.
The power to direct, regulate, or restrain; authority over something or someone.
"The directors kept strict controul over the company's spending."
Obsolete spelling; use "control" in any modern context.
To exercise directing or restraining authority over; to regulate or command.
"A single magistrate was appointed to controul the market prices."
Historical verb usage; modern English uses "control".
Rarely pluralized even historically; the singular dominated because the concept usually referred to a single sphere of authority.
"Each province fell under a separate controul administered from London."
Before "control" settled into its modern spelling, English writers used "controul" — a fossil of the French phrase "contre-rolle", literally a counter-roll kept to check a master roll.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of controul
"Controul" entered English alongside its rival spelling "control" from Old French "contrerole" / "contre-rolle", meaning a duplicate register kept "against" (i.e., to verify) a main roll of accounts. The underlying elements are the medieval Latin "contra" ("against") and "rotulus" ("roll"). Both spellings were current in British usage through the 17th and 18th centuries, and "controul" was still listed in major dictionaries such as Johnson's (1755), but it was eventually abandoned in favour of "control". Related words descending from the same French source include "controller" (originally the keeper of the counter-roll) and, more distantly, "parole".
How controul is actually used
"Controul" is now obsolete; readers will encounter it only in historical documents and older editions. It should never be used in contemporary writing, where "control" is the sole accepted form.
Easily confused with controul
"Controul" is simply an outdated British spelling of "control"; in modern writing only "control" is correct.
"Parole" derives from the same French root but means a promise or conditional release, not command or regulation.