tutelary

[ toot-l-er-ee, tyoot- ]
See synonyms for: tutelarytutelaries on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. having the position of guardian or protector of a person, place, or thing: tutelary saint.

  2. of or relating to a guardian or guardianship.

noun,plural tu·te·lar·ies.
  1. a person who has tutelary powers, as a saint, deity, or guardian.

Origin of tutelary

1
1605–15; <Latin tūtēlārius guardian; see tutelage, -ary
  • Also tu·te·lar [toot-l-er, tyoot-]. /ˈtut l ər, ˈtyut-/.

Other words from tutelary

  • su·per·tu·te·lar·y, adjective
  • un·tu·te·lar, adjective
  • un·tu·te·lar·y, adjective

Words Nearby tutelary

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use tutelary in a sentence

  • The Lar or tutelary divinity of the house seems, however, to have retained his ancient place in the trium.

    The Private Life of the Romans | Harold Whetstone Johnston
  • Zulus are great believers in tutelary spirits, of which each individual has one or more continually watching over him.

    The Luck of Gerard Ridgeley | Bertram Mitford
  • To return to the theory that totems are tutelary spirits in animal or other natural forms.

  • The Euahlayi, in Australia for instance, call tutelary spirits yunbeai; hereditary totems they call by a separate name, Dhe.

  • Thus the Thlinket, totemic on Australian primitive lines, do not regard their hereditary exogamous totems as "tutelary spirits."

British Dictionary definitions for tutelary

tutelary

tutelar (ˈtjuːtɪlə)

/ (ˈtjuːtɪlərɪ) /


adjective
  1. invested with the role of guardian or protector

  2. of or relating to a guardian or guardianship

nounplural -laries or -lars
  1. a tutelary person, deity, or saint

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012