stewardship

noun

stew·​ard·​ship ˈstü-ərd-ˌship 

ˈstyü-;

ˈst(y)u̇rd-

1

: the office, duties, and obligations of a steward

2

: the conducting, supervising, or managing of something

especially : the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one's care

stewardship of natural resources

Did you know?

Good Stewardship

When stewardship first appeared in English during the Middle Ages, it functioned as a job description, denoting the office of a steward, or manager of a large household. Over the centuries, its range of reference spread to the oversight of law courts, employee unions, college dining halls, Masonic lodges, and many other organizations. In recent years, the long-established "management" sense of stewardship has evolved a positive meaning, “careful and responsible management.” This sense is commonly found nowadays in contexts such as “stewardship of the environment, the family business,” etc. It also occasionally appears as an adjective in phrases such as “stewardship fundraising" (that is, fundraising aimed at building good relationships with donors in order to keep them loyal).

Synonyms

• administration
• care
• charge
• conduct
• control
• direction
• governance
• government
• guidance
• handling
• intendance
• management
• operation
• oversight
• presidency
• regulation
• running
• superintendence
• superintendency
• supervision

Examples of stewardship in a Sentence

generally the dean left the day-to-day stewardship of the college to the assistant dean

she believes that stewardship of the environment is everyone's responsibility

Recent Examples on the Web

McDermott’s stewardship of ServiceNow is certainly working. —Jim Edwards, Fortune, 31 Oct. 2024

Good environmental stewardship should include improving the safety, efficiency and productivity of traditional resource extraction. —Jim Vinoski, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024

Since 2019, the institute has been under the stewardship of Reihan Salam, who became its president after half a decade as executive editor of National Review. —Yiyun Li, Harper's Magazine, 23 Oct. 2024

Responsible/Safe operation: stable funding, good stewardship of the funds provided, look for opportunities to be efficient, and a safe welcoming environment. —Pioneer Press Elections Team, Twin Cities, 22 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

stewardship

noun

stew·​ard·​ship ˈst(y)ü-ərd-ˌship 

ˈst(y)u̇(-ə)rd-

1

: the office and duties of a steward

2

: the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one's care

stewardship of our natural resources