steward

noun stew·ard \ ˈstü-ərd , ˈstyü- ; ˈst(y)u̇rd \

|Updated on: 19 Jun 2018

Definition of steward

1 : one employed in a large household or estate to manage domestic concerns (such as the supervision of servants, collection of rents, and keeping of accounts)

2 : shop steward

3 : a fiscal agent

4 a : an employee on a ship, airplane, bus, or train who manages the provisioning of food and attends passengers

b : one appointed to supervise the provision and distribution of food and drink in an institution

5 : one who actively directs affairs : manager

See steward defined for English-language learners

See steward defined for kids

Examples of steward in a Sentence

the steward of their investments
teaching our children to be good stewards of the land
the steward of the estate
The race stewards are reviewing the results.

Recent Examples of steward from the Web

Larry Aumiller, who managed the place for 30 years, and his successors have been meticulous stewards of that mandate.

— christopher solomon, Outside Online, "Op-Ed: Alaska’s Pebble Mine Somehow Just Got Worse," 11 June 2018
Following a stewards' inquiry, MORNING DANCE was disqualified and placed fifth for interference in the stretch.

— john cherwa, latimes.com, "Racing! Happy Preakness Day," 19 May 2018
Today, Kiki Wolfkill is a studio head at 343 Industries, the stewards of the Halo mega-franchise, overseeing transmedia efforts.

— steven t. wright, Ars Technica, "Life in (virtual) pit lane: The war stories of video game car design," 28 Apr. 2018
As a board, we are called to be the stewards of the funds of our school district.

— mike glenn, Houston Chronicle, "Special language immersion program doesn't serve enough students, Katy ISD officials say," 26 Feb. 2018
No true Kentuckian would have tolerated Colonel Roosevelt's mint julep recipe simply because the president's steward used rye whiskey instead of bourbon and also added a dash of brandy to it.

— mark will-weber, Town & Country, "A Complete History of the Mint Julep," 10 Apr. 2017
My main focus is not on me, but just doing good work and being the proper steward and gatekeeper for the Pulitzers and celebrating the winners. ...

— danielle c. belton, The Root, "Kendrick Lamar Gets His Pulitzer, but It’s Pulitzer Administrator Dana Canedy Who Is a Prize," 31 May 2018
While working at a horse racing event at Chepstow Racecourse in England, TV reporter Moore saw a horse named Give Em a Clump had unseated its rider and eluded stewards for 4 miles, according to the BBC.

— pete grathoff, kansascity, "TV reporter catches runaway racehorse – and she uses just one hand | The Kansas City Star," 23 May 2018
These portray individuals associated with the Chugach wilderness and serve to make the point that wild places need human stewards.

— nancy lord, Anchorage Daily News, "In ‘A Wild Promise,’ a wilderness area in limbo and a book with a mission," 19 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'steward.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of steward

Middle English, from Old English stīweard, from stī, stig hall, sty + weard ward — more at sty, ward

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

steward Synonyms

Other Job Terms

factotum, milliner, ostler, scrivener, tinker, webster, wordsmith

steward

verb

Definition of steward

stewarded; stewarding; stewards

transitive verb

: to act as a steward for : manage

intransitive verb

: to perform the duties of a steward

Examples of steward in a Sentence

will steward the city's library programs

Recent Examples of steward from the Web

Because of nuclear test bans, the only legit way to stop worrying and learn to steward the bomb supply is to simulate—on a supercomputer—what’s going on inside.

— sarah scoles, WIRED, "Cosmic Ray Showers Crash Supercomputers. Here's What to Do About It," 4 June 2018
Oswalt helped steward the book’s completion, with the help of a journalist, Billy Jensen, and a researcher, Paul Haynes.

— eli rosenberg, Washington Post, "She stalked the Golden State Killer until she died. Some think her work led to the suspect’s arrest.," 26 Apr. 2018
The club steward reportedly locked the food in the pantry and refused to serve them.

— william stadiem, Town & Country, "Can Harvard's Storied Final Clubs Resist the Tides of Change?," 2 Aug. 2016
Duffy notes that social media specialists’ roles are not simply to steward a brand’s presence on social media, but to act as a personal round-the-clock ambassador for the brand.

— jessi hempel, WIRED, "How Social Media Became a Pink Collar Job," 26 May 2018
Grizzlies have been stewarded successfully in Greater Yellowstone without hunting for four decades.

— National Geographic, "Yellowstone-Area Grizzly Bears to Be Hunted for First Time in Decades," 24 May 2018
Visitors will be helped by a team of 140 Royal Borough ambassadors who have volunteered to help steward the event and assist visitors throughout the day.

— katie nicholl, Vanities, "Royal Wedding: All the Date, Time, and Streaming Info a Royal-Obsessive Needs," 11 May 2018
Uber, which hasn’t had a CFO since 2015, needs a finance head to help steward an initial public offering planned for 2019.

— greg bensinger, WSJ, "Uber Stumbles in Lengthy CFO Search Ahead of IPO," 11 May 2018
At issue is control of a local government agency that stewards about $38.4 million a year in federal money, and the related patronage contracts, to manage 200 public housing units on Acre Road in Marrero and almost 4,730 subsidized housing vouchers.

— drew broach, NOLA.com, "Fired housing official is reappointed to Jefferson Parish board," 8 May 2018

First Known Use of steward

1621

in the meaning defined at transitive sense

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

steward Synonyms

Synonyms

administer, administrate, carry on, conduct, control, direct, govern, guide, handle, keep, manage, operate, overlook, oversee, preside (over), regulate, run, superintend, supervise, tend;

Related Words

care (for), mind, watch;

lead, pilot, steer;

guard, protect, safeguard;

micromanage, stage-manage;

codirect, comanage;

Phrases

watch over;

STEWARD Defined for English Language Learners

steward

noun

Definition of steward for English Language Learners

: a person and especially a man whose job is to serve meals and take care of passengers on a train, airplane, or ship
: someone who protects or is responsible for money, property, etc.
: a person whose job is to manage the land and property of another person