air-raid warden

American

noun

a civilian having special duties during an air-raid alert, as directing people to air-raid shelters.

air-raid warden British

noun

a member of a civil defence organization responsible for enforcing regulations, etc, during an air attack

"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

Etymology

Origin of air-raid warden

First recorded in 1935–40

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.

Several characters, such as Benjamin Clementine’s air-raid warden Ife, are based on real figures.

From Los Angeles Times

As with the air-raid warden and Dr. Dotson, we ultimately trusted they knew what they were doing.

From Washington Post

On another occasion, the director Fred Zinnemann, who lived near Salka, was patrolling the neighborhood as an air-raid warden.

From Washington Post

He worked as an industrial designer by day and an air-raid warden and firefighter at night.

From Seattle Times

What patriotic first-grade teacher had volunteered to be the air-raid warden at Oyster-Adams?

From Washington Post

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