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wardenship

 - 4 dictionary results

war⋅den

  [wawr-dn]
Use wardenship in a Sentence
–noun
1. a person charged with the care or custody of persons, animals, or things; keeper.
2. the chief administrative officer in charge of a prison.
3. any of various public officials charged with superintendence, as over a port or wildlife.
4. air-raid warden.
5. fire warden.
6. (in Connecticut) the chief executive officer of a borough.
7. (formerly) the principal official in a region, town, etc.
8. British.
a. (initial capital letter) a traditional title of the president or governor of certain schools and colleges: Warden of Merton College.
b. a member of a livery company of the City of London.
9. Canadian. the head of certain county or local councils.
10. a member of the governing body of a guild.
11. a churchwarden.
12. a gatekeeper.
Origin:
1175–1225; ME wardein < OF (northeast dial.), equiv. to ward- (root of warder to guard; see ward ) + -ein, var. of -ien, -enc < Gmc -ing -ing 3

Related forms:
ward⋅en⋅ship, noun

Synonyms:
1. warder, guardian, guard, custodian, caretaker, superintendent.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To wardenship
war·den   (wôrd'n)   
n.  

  1. The chief administrative official of a prison.

  2. An official charged with the enforcement of certain laws and regulations: an air raid warden.

  3. Chiefly British

    1. The chief executive official in charge of a port or market.

    2. Any of various crown officers having administrative duties.

    3. One of the governing officials of certain colleges, schools, guilds, or hospitals; a trustee.

  4. The chief executive of a borough in certain states.

  5. A churchwarden.


[Middle English wardein, from Old North French, from warder, to guard, of Germanic origin; see wer-3 in Indo-European roots.]
war'den·ship' n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

warden 
c.1225, "one who guards," from O.N.Fr. wardein, from Frankish *warding- (cf. O.Fr. guardenc), from *wardon "to watch, guard" (see ward (v.)). Meaning "governor of a prison" is recorded from c.1300.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: war·den
Function: noun
Etymology: Anglo-French wardein gardein guardian, from warder garder to guard, protect
1 : an official charged with special supervisory duties or with the enforcement of specified laws or regulations warden>
2 : an official in charge of the operation of a prison
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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