custodian
noun/kəˈstoʊdiən/
Etymology From a shortening of Latin custōdiānātus, from Latin custōdia (“a keeping, watch, guard, prison”), from custōs (“a keeper, watchman, guard”). By surface analysis, custody + -ian.
1
A person entrusted with the custody or care of something or someone; a caretaker or keeper.
- After their parents' death, their aunt became the children's custodian.
- The building's custodian could fix nearly anything. The place always looked great!
2 more examples
- The middle class is the. demitone of human society, custodian of the balance, and no fair social order could exist without the cooperation of this class.1947, David Saavedra, Go South Young Man, page 80:
- Dr. Weber and her colleagues are the latest custodians of the Beal seed viability experiment: a multicentury attempt to figure out how long seeds can lie dormant in the soil without losing their ability to germinate.2021 April 21, Cara Giaimo, “One of the World’s Oldest Science Experiments Comes Up From the Dirt”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 27 Apr 2021:
2
An administrator.
3
A gaolkeeper.
4
A protector or guard.
- Derived terms
- cryptocustodian, custodianship