stew

¹ American  

[stoo, styoo] / stu, styu /

verb (used with object)

1. to cook (food) by simmering or slow boiling.

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verb (used without object)

1. to undergo cooking by simmering or slow boiling.

2. Informal. to fret, worry, or fuss.

   He stewed about his chaotic state of affairs all day.

3. to feel uncomfortable due to a hot, humid, stuffy atmosphere, as in a closed room; swelter.

noun

1. a preparation of meat, fish, or other food cooked by stewing, especially a mixture of meat and vegetables.

   Synonyms:

   ragout, casserole

2. Informal. a state of agitation, uneasiness, or worry.

3. a brothel; whorehouse.

4. stews, a neighborhood occupied chiefly by brothels.

5. Obsolete. a vessel for boiling or stewing.

idioms

1. stew in one's own juice, to suffer the consequences of one's own actions.

stew ² American  

[stoo, styoo] / stu, styu /

noun

Slang.

1. a male or female flight attendant.

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stew ¹ British  

/ stjuː /

noun

1. 1. a dish of meat, fish, or other food, cooked by stewing

   2. ( as modifier )

      stew pot

2. informal a difficult or worrying situation or a troubled state (esp in the phrase in a stew )

3. a heterogeneous mixture

   a stew of people of every race

4. archaic (usually plural) a brothel

5. obsolete a public room for hot steam baths

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verb

1. to cook or cause to cook by long slow simmering

2. informal (intr) to be troubled or agitated

3. informal (intr) to be oppressed with heat or crowding

4. to cause (tea) to become bitter or (of tea) to become bitter through infusing for too long

5. to suffer unaided the consequences of one's actions

stew ² British  

/ stjuː /

noun

1. a fishpond or fishtank

2. an artificial oyster bed

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stew More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing stew

• in a stew

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Related Words

See boil ¹.

Other Word Forms

• stewable adjective

Etymology

Origin of stew¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English steuen, stuwe “to take a sweat bath,” from Middle French estuver, verbal derivative of estuve “sweat room of a bath”; stove ¹

Origin of stew²

An Americanism dating back to 1970–1975; shortening of steward ( def. ) or stewardess ( def. )

Example Sentences

A dryad brought him bread made from walnuts and a bowl of crushed apricots stewed with honey.

From Literature

As in beef stew with loads of paprika?

From Literature

"I wrote it on Monday because I'd been stewing in anger about ICE," Terrell posted on Instagram, adding he was stunned by the reception it received.

From Barron's

“A deer got killed on the highway. My grandpa cooked up a stew. What’s the big deal?”

From Literature

After a little kitchen reset, they’d open the door to spaghetti night, or roast chicken with challah, or a big pot of stew—same night, every week.

From Salon

Related Words

• boil
• fret
• fume
• seethe
• simmer