stew
1 Americanverb (used with object)
-
stews,
present (3rd person singular)
-
stewed,
past participle, past
-
stewing
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
stews,
present (3rd person singular)
-
stewed,
past participle, past
-
stewing
present participle
-
to undergo cooking by simmering or slow boiling.
-
Informal. to fret, worry, or fuss.
He stewed about his chaotic state of affairs all day.
-
to feel uncomfortable due to a hot, humid, stuffy atmosphere, as in a closed room; swelter.
noun
-
a preparation of meat, fish, or other food cooked by stewing, especially a mixture of meat and vegetables.
-
Informal. a state of agitation, uneasiness, or worry.
-
a brothel; whorehouse.
-
stews, a neighborhood occupied chiefly by brothels.
-
Obsolete. a vessel for boiling or stewing.
idioms
noun
noun
-
-
a dish of meat, fish, or other food, cooked by stewing
-
( as modifier )
stew pot
-
-
informal a difficult or worrying situation or a troubled state (esp in the phrase in a stew )
-
a heterogeneous mixture
a stew of people of every race
-
archaic (usually plural) a brothel
-
obsolete a public room for hot steam baths
verb
-
to cook or cause to cook by long slow simmering
-
informal (intr) to be troubled or agitated
-
informal (intr) to be oppressed with heat or crowding
-
to cause (tea) to become bitter or (of tea) to become bitter through infusing for too long
-
to suffer unaided the consequences of one's actions
noun
-
a fishpond or fishtank
-
an artificial oyster bed
Synonym Usage
See boil 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
stewsimple
-
stewssimple
-
have stewedperfect
-
has stewedperfect
-
am stewingprogressive
-
are stewingprogressive
-
is stewingprogressive
-
have been stewingperfect progressive
-
has been stewingperfect progressive
Past
-
stewedsimple
-
had stewedperfect
-
was stewingprogressive
-
were stewingprogressive
-
had been stewingperfect progressive
Future
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”; see origin at stove 1
Origin of stew2
An Americanism dating back to 1970–1975; shortening of steward ( def. ) or stewardess ( def. )
Explanation
To stew is to slowly cook food, which results in a soup-like food called a stew. To stew also means to brood angrily. If you cook something slowly, like beef or vegetables, you stew it. The result of stewing is also called stew, which is usually chunky, like a thick soup. People can stew in another way when it comes to emotions. If your sister sits and worries about something, she stews. The root of stew is the Old French estuver, "bathe or stew." Back in the fourteenth century, stew was also a slang word meaning "brothel or bath house."
Vocabulary lists containing stew
Blanch, Poach, and Scald: Cooking Methods
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
As Brave as You
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"Familiar Places"
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
Sometimes I want the lemon flavor to be the whole point: a lemony avgolemono, for instance, or a chicken stew that tastes unabashedly citrusy.
From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026
"For us Hungarians, paprika is a wonder," one of the competitors, local fast-food restaurant owner Imre Zseni said, while stirring a beef stew.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
With the extended international break coming up, they have three weeks to stew on this latest defeat.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
I like the sundubu-jjigae, spicy tofu stew at Surawon Tofu House.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
The stew tasted of sage and carrots and hope.
From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson
When dried and salted, guitarfish is used in soups and stews across Ghana.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
In Burbank, family-run Tun Lahmajo delves into Armenian homestyle dishes, including flatbreads, cold salads, roasted meats, a range of soups and herbed stews.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
Social-media creators have documented their own perpetual stews with names like “Stewtheus” and “Soupina.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
Lamb is often Muslim consumers' meat of choice for family occasions and festivals like Ramadan and Eid, while mutton is a popular ingredient in curries and stews.
From BBC ● Mar. 5, 2026
It all glowed invitingly in the flicker of gaslight lamps, a world away from the oily stews of indeterminate origin I’d been choking down at the Priest Hole.
From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs
Beloved for its mildly sweet, nutty flavour and velvety texture, it later evolved into a party food, consumed as a jam or stewed with sticky rice balls in coconut milk.
From Barron's ● Oct. 6, 2026
I was hesitant to tell this story, and stewed over the potential risks I would be taking by telling it, but then I thought of the risk Steinem took.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026
“Mine is usually some version of everything stewed with whatever carbs I have left,” writes another Redditor.
From Salon ● May 30, 2026
In 2022, during Roach’s 23-win run, many viewers stewed over the champ’s chatty asides and mannerisms, especially Roach’s way of talking with their hands.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 21, 2026
There’s no use making the tea till Dad gets home because it will be stewed, coddled, boiled and unfit to drink.
From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt
Scurries, the high-school band director, was stewing over the data center in January.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
There’s comfort in sitting and stewing in your discontent.
From Salon ● May 30, 2026
"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 ● Jan. 29, 2026
We subsidize highways to the tune of $32 billion a year, only to sit on them stewing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2025
After she makes dozens of crosses all over my body, she says it’s time to see inside the egg, to understand what’s been stewing inside of me.
From "I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter" by Erika L. Sánchez
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.
