curator

noun

cu·​ra·​tor ˈkyu̇r-ˌā-tər 

ˈkyər-;

kyu̇-ˈrā- 

ˈkyu̇r-ə-, 

ˈkyər-

plural curators

: a person who oversees or manages a place (such as a museum or zoo) that offers exhibits

"My passion for animal care and collection management really drove me to become a curator."

—Scott Newland

also : a person at a museum, zoo, etc. who is in charge of a specific collection or subject area

the curator of manuscripts

curatorial

ˌkyu̇r-ə-ˈtȯr-ē-əl 

ˌkyər-

adjective

curatorship

ˈkyu̇r-ˌā-tər-ˌship 

ˈkyər-;

kyu̇-ˈrā-;

ˈkyu̇r-ə-, 

ˈkyər-

noun

Did you know?

In a good-sized art museum, each curator is generally responsible for a single department or collection: European painting, Asian sculpture, Native American art, and so on. Curatorial duties include acquiring new artworks, caring for and repairing objects already owned, discovering frauds and counterfeits, lending artworks to other museums, and mounting exhibitions of everything from Greek sculpture to 20th-century clothing.

Examples of curator in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

After a terse exchange with one of the museum’s curators, Killmonger and his collaborators smash a case holding a weapon made from Wakanda’s vibranium before jetting off with it. — Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 31 July 2026

Vietnamese American sisters Vivi and Calla are also a curator and an artist. — Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times, 31 July 2026

Kathy Balkman, chapter chair of the America 250 Committee, and Teresa Staples worked with state Capitol curators Jen Hughes and Michael Higgs to plan the exhibit and collect various items and artifacts. — Eric E. Harrison, Arkansas Online, 29 July 2026

Museum curators have long enjoyed the ability to move walls at will, though that almost always involves an environmentally wasteful process of construction, demolition, and starting from scratch. — Justin Davidson, Curbed, 29 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin cūrātor "one who looks after, superintendent, guardian," from cūrāre "to watch over, attend" + -tor, agent suffix — more at cure entry 2

First Known Use

1660, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing curator

• co-curator

Rhymes for curator

• creator
• debater
• deflator
• dictator
• dilator
• equator
• locator
• piscator
• pronator
• relator
• rotator
• testator

Kids Definition

curator

noun

cu·​ra·​tor ˈkyu̇(ə)r-ˌāt-ər  kyu̇-ˈrāt- 

ˈkyu̇r-ət-

: a person in charge of a museum or zoo

curatorship

-ˌship 

noun

Legal Definition

curator

noun

cu·​ra·​tor ˈkyu̇r-ˌā-tər, kyu̇-ˈrā-tər 

in the civil law of Louisiana : a person appointed by a court to care for the property of an absent person or to care for the person or property of someone mentally incapable of doing so compare committee, conservator, guardian, interdict, tutor

curatorship noun

Etymology

Latin, guardian, from curare to take care of