steward
pronunciation
How to pronounce steward in British English:
UK [ˈstjuːəd]
How to pronounce steward in American English:
US [ˈstuːərd]
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- Noun:
- someone who manages property or other affairs for someone else
- the ship's officer who is in charge of provisions and dining arrangements
- an attendant on an airplane
- a union member who is elected to represent fellow workers in negotiating with management
- one having charge of buildings or grounds or animals
Word Origin
- steward
- steward: [OE] A steward is etymologically someone ‘in charge of a sty’. Its Old English ancestor stigweard was a compound formed from stig ‘hall, house’ (a relative, if not the direct ancestor, of English sty ‘dwelling for pigs’) and weard ‘guardian, keeper’ – hence ‘keeper of the hall’.=> guard, sty, ward
- steward (n.)
- Old English stiward, stigweard "house guardian, housekeeper," from stig "hall, pen for cattle, part of a house" (see sty (n.1)) + weard "guard" (see ward (n.)). Used after the Conquest as the equivalent of Old French seneschal (q.v.). Meaning "overseer of workmen" is attested from c. 1300. The sense of "officer on a ship in charge of provisions and meals" is first recorded mid-15c.; extended to trains 1906. This was the title of a class of high officers of the state in early England and Scotland, hence meaning "one who manages affairs of an estate on behalf of his employer" (late 14c.). Meaning "person who supervises arrangements" at a meeting, dinner, etc., is from 1703. The Scottish form (with terminal -t attested from late 14c.) is reflected in Stewart, name of the royal house descended from Walter (the) Steward, who married (1315) Marjorie de Bruce, daughter of King Robert. Stuart is a French spelling, attested from 1429 and adopted by Mary, Queen of Scots.
Example
- 1. This transformed her from back-room steward into a politician with vote-winning credibility .
- 2. Few believe the party would have been a more responsible steward of the celtic tiger .
- 3. In the bible , a steward was a servant entrusted to manage an estate .
- 4. A fixer not a visionary , mr mukherjee was not the obvious choice to steward today 's more open and vibrant economy .
- 5. I know I have made my share of regrettable errors as a steward but the key is to try to do the correct thing and improve next time .