curate
Americannoun
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Chiefly British. a member of the clergy employed to assist a rector or vicar.
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any ecclesiastic entrusted with the cure of souls, as a parish priest.
verb (used with object)
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to take charge of (a museum) or organize (an art exhibit).
to curate a photography show.
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to pull together, sift through, and select for presentation, as music or website content.
“We curate our merchandise with a sharp eye for trending fashion,” the store manager explained.
noun
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a clergyman appointed to assist a parish priest
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a clergyman who has the charge of a parish ( curate-in-charge )
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an assistant barman
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of curate
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English curat, from Anglo-French or directly from Medieval Latin cūrātus, equivalent to Latin cūr(a) “care” + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
When you curate something, you organize and present it. If you work for a museum, you might curate an exhibit of abstract sculpture. The noun curate originally referred to anyone taking care of church property in some way. Nowadays, the noun generally refers to a person with religious training who conducts religious services. Curate comes from the word cure, and a curate is supposed to cure that most important part of you — your soul. When you curate a museum exhibit — or a selection of 1980s fashion for your retro blog — you care for or manage it just as a curate cares for a parish.
Vocabulary lists containing curate
"A Modest Proposal," Vocabulary from the satire
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"A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift
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Twelfth Night
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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.
See Examples For:
Like the Brontës, the Draydens are the eccentric daughters of a widowed curate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
Like Camallere, they used AI image generators to carefully curate each scene in the story.
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
Nidhi and Vik use that information to curate the mix around the table.
From BBC ● Jun. 21, 2026
But they had this little festival that they had in-house that they wanted me to curate.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2026
“Is that why the curate was dousing candles?”
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
Today’s newsletter was curated and edited by Liz Webber and Cristina Roca in collaboration with Editor in Chief Emma Tucker.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
“A carefully curated palette of wood, stone, water, and light blurs the boundaries between indoors and out, creating an atmosphere of serenity and effortless connection to the landscape.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
The Lost Weekend Planetarium show, external, named after the 31-year-old's new album which is due to be released on Friday, combines curated, nocturnal scenes by National Geographic night-sky photographer Babak Tafreshi with the 16-track record.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
Reyna: I promise that it will be curated.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
Everything she and Clara had so carefully curated over nearly seventy years was aflame, already beyond rescuing.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
Coldplay's Chris Martin is curating the extravaganza, a first for a football World Cup final and one that has raised concerns over how long the game's halftime break will be.
From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026
Jazz giant and celebrated bassist Stanley Clarke says launching and curating the new Santa Monica International Jazz Festival was serendipitous.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2026
People are increasingly savvy about curating their finances, especially when they get hitched.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 30, 2026
Apple is frustratingly good at curating to the letter what it chooses to say, even in private.
From BBC ● Apr. 21, 2026
Whether she is the successor or not, the Kim regime is curating a public rollout to normalize a fourth generation of leadership.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 28, 2026
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.
