steward definition | Dictionary.com

stew⋅ard

[stoo-erd, styoo-]

–noun

1.	a person who manages another's property or financial affairs; one who administers anything as the agent of another or others.

2.	a person who has charge of the household of another, buying or obtaining food, directing the servants, etc.

3.	an employee who has charge of the table, wine, servants, etc., in a club, restaurant, or the like.

4.	a person who attends to the domestic concerns of persons on board a vessel, as in overseeing maids and waiters.

5.	an employee on a ship, train, or bus who waits on and is responsible for the comfort of passengers, takes orders for or distributes food, etc.

6.	a flight attendant.

7.	a person appointed by an organization or group to supervise the affairs of that group at certain functions.

8.	U.S. Navy. a petty officer in charge of officer's quarters and mess.

–verb (used with object)

9.	to act as steward of; manage.

–verb (used without object)

10.	to act or serve as steward.

Origin:
bef. 900; ME; OE stīweard, stigweard, equiv. to stig- (sense uncert.; prob. “house, hall”; see sty ¹ ) + weard ward²

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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Language Translation for : steward

Italian:

steward,

German:

der, *die Steward, *eß,

Japanese:

スチュワード

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stew·ard (stōō'ərd, styōō'-) Pronunciation Key
n.

One who manages another's property, finances, or other affairs.
One who is in charge of the household affairs of a large estate, club, hotel, or resort.
A ship's officer who is in charge of provisions and dining arrangements.
An attendant on a ship or airplane.
An official who supervises or helps to manage an event.
A shop steward.
A wine steward.

intr. & tr.v. stew·ard·ed, stew·ard·ing, stew·ards
To serve as a steward or as the steward of.

[Middle English, from Old English stigweard, stīward : stig, stī, hall + weard, keeper; see wer-³ in Indo-European roots.]
stew'ard·ship' n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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steward

O.E. stiward, stigweard "house guardian," from stig "hall, pen" + weard "guard." Used after the Conquest as the equivalent of O.Fr. seneschal (q.v.). The sense of "officer on a ship in charge of provisions and meals" is first recorded c.1450; extended to trains 1906. Stewardess "female attendant on passenger aircraft" first attested 1931; used of ships (where she waited on the female passengers) from 1837. 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" (c.1386). Meaning "overseer of workmen" is attested from c.1300. The Scottish form is reflected in Stewart, name of the royal house, from Walter (the) Steward, who married (1315) Marjorie de Bruce, daughter of King Robert. The terminal -t is a Scottish form (c.1370). Stuart is a Fr. spelling, attested from 1429 and adopted by Mary, Queen of Scots.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper

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steward
noun
1.	someone who manages property or other affairs for someone else
2.	the ship's officer who is in charge of provisions and dining arrangements
3.	an attendant on an airplane
4.	a union member who is elected to represent fellow workers in negotiating with management [syn: shop steward]
5.	one having charge of buildings or grounds or animals [syn: custodian]

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.

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Main Entry: stew·ard
Function: noun
: SHOP STEWARD

Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.

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Steward, IL (village, FIPS 72624)
Location: (41.848485, -89.020671)
Population (2000): 271 (103 housing units)
Area: 0.124263 sq mi (land), 0.000000 sq mi (water)
Zip code(s): 60553

U.S. Gazetteer, U.S. Census Bureau

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Steward

Stew"ard\, n. [OE. stiward, AS. st[=i]weard, stigweard, literally, a sty ward; stigu sty + weard warden, guardian, -- his first duty having been probably to attend to the domestic animals. [root]164. See Sty pen for swine, Ward.]

1. A man employed in a large family, or on a large estate, to manage the domestic concerns, supervise other servants, collect the rents or income, keep accounts, and the like.

Worthy to be stewards of rent and land. --Chaucer.

They came near to the steward of Joseph's house. --Gen. xliii. 19.

As good stewards of the manifold grace of God. --1 Pet. iv. 10.

2. A person employed in a hotel, or a club, or on board a ship, to provide for the table, superintend the culinary affairs, etc. In naval vessels, the captain's steward, wardroom steward, steerage steward, warrant officers steward, etc., are petty officers who provide for the messes under their charge.

3. A fiscal agent of certain bodies; as, a steward in a Methodist church.

4. In some colleges, an officer who provides food for the students and superintends the kitchen; also, an officer who attends to the accounts of the students.

5. In Scotland, a magistrate appointed by the crown to exercise jurisdiction over royal lands. --Erskine.

Lord high steward, formerly, the first officer of the crown; afterward, an officer occasionally appointed, as for a coronation, or upon the trial of a peer. [Eng.]

Steward

Stew"ard\, v. t. To manage as a steward. [Obs.]