steward

1 of 2

noun

stew·​ard ˈstü-ərd How to pronounce steward (audio)
ˈstyü-;
ˈst(y)u̇rd
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
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

steward

2 of 2

verb

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

Noun 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. Verb will steward the city's library programs
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
That makes transparency and a commitment to being a good steward of your customers’ data vitally important. Laila Marouf, Forbes, 13 Nov. 2023 The girls show themselves to be responsible stewards. Jessica Bishopp, The New Yorker, 8 Nov. 2023 On Thursday evening, Rod Roddenberry, son of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry and steward of the Roddenberry estate, shared a message on Facebook expressing a desire to get in touch with the seller to see about the model's return. Samuel Axon, Ars Technica, 7 Nov. 2023 One of the biggest cheers of the day came in the $1-million Dirt Mile when Cody’s Wish survived a stewards’ inquiry to put an exclamation point on the fairytale story of a boy and horse. John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2023 Culpo then greeted friends at an airport before laughing as she was greeted outside a private plane by two shirtless stewards who had donned bow ties and were holding trays. Escher Walcott, Peoplemag, 4 Nov. 2023 The president is commander in chief of America’s military and the chief steward of its foreign policy. William A. Galston, WSJ, 24 Oct. 2023 Lanier’s quest is about finding a rightful steward to make decisions over the handling of the photographs and how they are presented. Jennifer Berry Hawes, ProPublica, 9 Oct. 2023 Congress has a responsibility to be faithful stewards of our tax dollars. TIME, 26 Oct. 2023
Verb
Sunday, the Orioles clinched their first playoff berth since 2016, the culmination of a rebuilding process that fully launched in the winter of 2018 when Mike Elias was brought in as executive vice president and general manager and hired Hyde as manager to steward a club designed to struggle. Nathan Ruiz, Baltimore Sun, 17 Sep. 2023 Kennedy helped steward the company’s IPO and now intends to focus on board service. Bysheryl Estrada, Fortune, 6 Sep. 2023 Intelligence agencies and the Pentagon currently steward this data, most of which is not public. Mary Magnuson, Discover Magazine, 15 Aug. 2023 The traditional homeland of the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County, the conservancy plans to partner with the tribe to help steward the land, restore its fish and wildlife, and provide free recreational opportunities to the public. Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 23 Aug. 2023 Culture and history:Indigenous people find legal, cultural barriers to protect sacred spaces off tribal lands But the Havasupai have continued to fight for their ancestral lands and the right to steward them. Debra Utacia Krol, The Arizona Republic, 9 Aug. 2023 Pueblo people have a continuing relationship with their ancestors and an obligation to steward them. Mary Hudetz, ProPublica, 20 July 2023 By executing a $10M policy, the insurance enabled the client to amend and execute the estate plan to send the $20M to a family foundation - to privatize and steward the family's investment in humanity, locally, without disinheriting the family. Todd Purich, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2023 With photographs, artwork and stories from the Tongva, the exhibit will teach visitors how to steward this valuable land. Dakota Kim, Los Angeles Times, 13 July 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'steward.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

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

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1621, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of steward was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near steward

Cite this Entry

“Steward.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/steward. Accessed 6 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

steward

noun
stew·​ard
ˈst(y)ü-ərd,
ˈst(y)u̇(-ə)rd
1
: a manager of a large home, estate, or organization
2
: a person employed to manage the supply and distribution of food and attend the needs of passengers (as on a train, airplane, or ship)
Etymology

Noun

Old English stīweard, literally, "keeper of the hall, keeper of the sty," from stī "hall, sty" and weard "ward, guard, keeper"

Legal Definition

steward

noun
stew·​ard

More from Merriam-Webster on steward

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!