stew
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stew¹
- /stʃʉː/ Australia
- /stjuː/ UK
- /stʃuː/ UK
- /stu/ US
Sounds like stu, Stew, Stu · Rhymes with -uː
Where it comes from
From Middle English stewe, stue, from Anglo-Norman estouve, Old French estuve (“bath, bathhouse”) (modern French étuve), from Medieval Latin stupha, of uncertain origin. Perhaps from Vulgar Latin *extufāre, from ex- + Ancient Greek τῦφος (tûphos, “smoke, steam”), from τύφω (túphō, “to smoke”). See also Italian stufare, Portuguese estufar. Compare also Old English stuf-bæþ (“a hot-air bath, vapour bath”); see stove.
noun stews
- A cooking-dish used for boiling; a cauldron.
- A heated bath-room or steam-room; also, a hot bath. And when he came to the chamber there as this lady was the dores of yron vnlocked and vnbolted / And so syr launcelot wente in to the chambre that was as hote as ony stewe / And there syr launcelot toke the fayrest lady by the hand / that euer he sawe / and she was naked as a nedel And when he came
- A brothel. [...] and the agrieved person shall doe more manly, to be extraordinary and singular in claiming the due right whereof he is frustrated, then to piece up his lost contentment by visiting the Stews, or stepping to his neighbours bed, which is the common shift in this mis-fortune, or els by suffering
- A prostitute. But it was so plotted betwixt the Lady, her Husband, and Bristol, that instead of that beauty, he had a notorious Stew sent him, and surely his carriage there was so lascivious...
- A dish cooked by stewing. I noticed then that there was nothing to drink on the table but brandy, and nothing to eat but salted herrings, and a hot, sickly, highly peppered stew.
-
A pool in which fish are kept in preparation for eating.
It was used as a stew, so that the inhabitants of the castle could have fish on Fridays, and for this reason the architects had been careful not to let the drains and sewers run into it. It was stocked with fish every year.
Similar: stewpond
- An artificial bed of oysters.
- A state of agitated excitement, worry, or confusion. to be in a stew
- Unwanted background noise recorded by the microphone. mike stew
stew²
- /stʃʉː/ Australia
- /stjuː/ UK
- /stʃuː/ UK
- /stu/ US
Sounds like stu, Stew, Stu · Rhymes with -uː
Where it comes from
From Middle English stewen, stuwen, from the noun above; and also from Middle English stiven, styven (“to bathe, cook, stew”).
verb stews · stewing · stewed
- To cook (food) by slowly boiling or simmering. I'm going to stew some meat for the casserole.
- To brew (tea) for too long, so that the flavour becomes too strong.
- To suffer under uncomfortably hot conditions. It was an honest letter, written by an honest man, then stewing in the Plains on two hundred rupees a month (for he allowed his wife eight hundred and fifty), and in a silk banian and cotton trousers.
- To be in a state of elevated anxiety or anger.
stew³
- /stʃʉː/ Australia
- /stjuː/ UK
- /stʃuː/ UK
- /stu/ US
Sounds like stu, Stew, Stu · Rhymes with -uː
Where it comes from
Probably related to Middle Dutch stuven (“be dusty”) and English stive. Perhaps the same word as stew (“steam-room; dish cooked by stewing”) above.
noun
- A cloud of fine particles or droplets; dust, smoke, vapor, mist, or sea-spray. The Verna swerved close, her stern kicking up a stew as she started to back up.
stew⁴
- /stʃʉː/ Australia
- /stjuː/ UK
- /stʃuː/ UK
- /stu/ US
Sounds like stu, Stew, Stu · Rhymes with -uː
Where it comes from
Clipping of steward or stewardess.
noun stews
- A steward or stewardess on an airplane or boat. It is our considered and combined judgement that Germans and actors share honors for being the cheapest dates a stew can accept.
Stew⁵
- /stu/ US
Sounds like stew, stu, Stu · Rhymes with -uː
proper noun
- A diminutive of the male given name Stewart.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: grizzle, lather, fret, sweat, brood, sulk, swither, grudge, olla, mulligan, casserole, soup, slumgullion, ragout, lobscouse, burgoo
Translations
Every language
noun dish
| Español | guisado, cocido, estofado, guiso, shishpolá |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 스튜 seutyu, 찌개 jjigae |
| 日本語 | シチュー shichū |
| 中文 | 燉菜 /炖菜 dùncài |
| Português | cozido, ensopado, guisado |
| Français | ragoût |
| Deutsch | Eintopf, Brei |
| Italiano | stufato |
| Ελληνικά | στιφάδο stifádo, βραστό vrastó |
| Русский | тушёное мя́со tušónoje mjáso, рагу́ ragú, жарко́е žarkóje |
| العربية | يَخْنَة yaḵna |
verb to cook (food)
| Español | guisar |
|---|---|
| Português | guisar |
| Français | mijoter |
| Deutsch | schmoren, dünsten, dämpfen |
| Italiano | stufare, lessare |
| Ελληνικά | σιγοβράζω sigovrázo, γιαχνίζω giachnízo |
| Română | găti, găti la capac, înăbuși |
| Русский | туши́ть tušítʹ, потуши́ть potušítʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | hầm, ninh |
verb to brew (tea)
| Français | faire du thé |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | aufbrühen |
verb to suffer under hot conditions
| Português | assar |
|---|---|
| Français | transpirer, étouffer |
| Deutsch | schwitzen |
| Italiano | boccheggiare, soffocare, cuocere, bollire, lessare |
| Ελληνικά | ψήνομαι psínomai |
verb to be in a state of elevated anxiety
| Français | frémir, trembler, frissonner |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | schäumen, aufregen |
| Italiano | stare sui carboni ardenti, preoccuparsi, ribollire |
| Ελληνικά | βράζω vrázo |
Talk about this word "stew." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/stew. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. stew. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/stew "stew." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/stew.Cite this
@misc{stew_2026,
title = {stew},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/stew},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
