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warden

1 American  
[wawr-dn] / ˈwɔr dn /

noun

  1. a person charged with the care or custody of persons, animals, or things; keeper.

    Synonyms:
    superintendent, caretaker, custodian, guard, guardian, warder

  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. firewarden.

  6. (in Connecticut) the chief executive officer of a borough.

  7. (formerly) the principal official in a region, town, etc.

  8. British.

    1. (initial capital letter) a traditional title of the president or governor of certain schools and colleges.

      Warden of Merton College.

    2. 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.

Warden 2 American  
[wawr-dn] / ˈwɔr dn /

noun

British: Archaic.

  1. any of several pears having a crisp, firm flesh, used in baking and cooking.

warden 1 British  
/ ˈwɔːdən /

noun

  1. a person who has the charge or care of something, esp a building, or someone

  2. any of various public officials, esp one responsible for the enforcement of certain regulations

  3. a person employed to patrol a national park or safari park

  4. the chief officer in charge of a prison

  5. the principal or president of any of various universities or colleges

  6. See churchwarden

"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
warden 2 British  
/ ˈwɔːdən /

noun

  1. a variety of pear that has crisp firm flesh and is used for cooking

"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

Other Word Forms

  • subwarden noun
  • subwardenship noun
  • underwarden noun
  • wardenry noun
  • wardenship noun

Etymology

Origin of warden1

1175–1225; Middle English wardein < Old French (northeast dial.), equivalent to ward- (root of warder to guard; ward ) + -ein, variant of -ien, -enc < Germanic -ing -ing 3

Origin of Warden2

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English wardoun, wardon(e); of uncertain origin; perhaps from Anglo-French or Anglo-Latin wardō (inflectional stem wardōn-)

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Heritage wardens who patrol Westminster Square 24 hours a day alerted the police to the graffiti, the spokesperson added.

From BBC

But, as Chance Andes, the warden of San Quentin, pointed out last week, “Humanity is safety,” and treating incarcerated people like, well, people, actually makes them want to behave better.

From Los Angeles Times

His air raid warden’s helmet sits beside the stacks of papers.

From Literature

Church warden Lesley Harling said: "I think it's amazing. Apart from anything else, the sheer amount of work that goes into it."

From BBC

Local vet staff and a council dog warden came to the rescue but the attempt took many hours - not to mention a lot of food - before all three were rounded up.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.