Meaning & use
stewardship
Last updated
UK/ˈstjuː.əd.ʃɪp/
US/ˈstuː.ɚd.ʃɪp/
Meaning
noununcountableformal
The careful and responsible looking after of something that has been trusted to you, such as land, money, or an organization.
Grammar: Not used with an or a plural: under her stewardship.
Patterns
- stewardship of something
- under someone's stewardship
The charity grew rapidly under her stewardship.
Good stewardship of forests protects them for future generations.
Donors expect careful stewardship of their gifts.
Common combinations
- environmental stewardship
- The company promotes environmental stewardship.
- under someone's stewardship
- The school thrived under his stewardship.
- responsible stewardship
- Responsible stewardship of water is essential.
- stewardship of resources
- The board is judged on its stewardship of resources.
Synonyms and how they differ
- management
- Management is neutral and about running something, while stewardship adds a duty to look after it for others.
- custodianship
- Custodianship focuses on guarding something, and is rarer than stewardship.
- guardianship
- Guardianship often involves legal duty, especially for a child or ward.
Opposites
Word family
Practice
Under the mayor's careful ___ of public funds, the city avoided debt.
Choose one answer.
Stewardship means responsible care of something held in trust. Ownership is wrong because public funds are not the mayor's own.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “stewardship”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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