curator

American  

[kyoo-rey-ter, kyoor-ey-, kyoor-uh-ter] / kjʊˈreɪ tər, ˈkjʊər eɪ-, ˈkjʊər ə tər /

noun

• curators
  plural

1. the person in charge of a museum, art collection, etc.

2. a person who selects content for presentation, as on a website.

3. a manager; superintendent.

4. Law. a guardian of a minor or any other person who is unable to care for their own affairs, especially with regard to their property.

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curator British  

/ ˌkjʊərəˈtɔːrɪəl, kjʊəˈreɪtə /

noun

1. the administrative head of a museum, art gallery, or similar institution

2. law a guardian of a minor, mentally ill person, etc

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• curatorship
  noun
• subcurator
  noun
• subcuratorship
  noun
• curatorial
  adjective
• subcuratorial
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• curators
  plural

Etymology

Origin of curator

First recorded in 1325–75; from Latin, equivalent to cūrā(re) “to care for, attend to” ( see cure) + -tor -tor

Explanation

If you are the curator of the school art show, you choose which pieces will be in it and decide how they will be displayed. A curator is someone who manages an art collection or exhibit. The kind of artwork a curator manages does not have to be the visual kind. You can curate a series of readings by selecting which authors read in it and who reads together. A curator is the person who gives the overall shape and feel to an art exhibit. In law, if you are the curator of someone's estate, you have been given legal power to manage it for someone who is too young or mentally unable to do it themselves.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

curator curators

The discovery was made by students taking a field course taught by Waters and Charles Cobb, curator of historical archaeology at the museum.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 22, 2026

"We are thrilled that nature delivered such a precious asteroid sample on our doorstep," said curator Denton Ebel.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026

Emily Lindsey, curator and excavation site director at the La Brea Tar Pits’ center, said the discovery of the ice age toad is an example of the ongoing discoveries being made at the museum.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

The idea of play is central to this thematically arranged exhibition, organized by guest curator Dexter Wimberly with the ICA’s Tessa Bachi Haas.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

A few months later, the Getty’s curator of antiquities, Marion True, wrote a long, glowing account of the museum’s acquisition for the art journal The Burlington Magazine.

From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell

By focusing on small exchanges among overlooked artists and mediums, the curators reveal how an EIC style was produced not by top-down decree, but through dynamic interactions among networks of ambitious artists.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 3, 2026

The question is: Do you buy what Duchamp and the curators are selling?

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 30, 2026

"It's a daunting task," said Abeer Saha, who was one of a handful of curators tasked with choosing from 150 million objects across the Smithsonian -- which runs more than 20 museums and galleries.

From Barron's ● May 29, 2026

Finalists were paid to develop proposals that were judged by a panel of art professionals including curators from the museums along Miracle Mile.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 8, 2026

The author talked about how this uproar was probably also good for art historians and museum curators.

From "Chasing Vermeer" by Blue Balliett

Related Words

• administrator
• conservator
• custodian
• director
• manager