stew
1 Americanverb (used with object)
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stews,
present (3rd person singular)
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stewed,
past participle, past
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stewing
present participle
verb (used without object)
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stews,
present (3rd person singular)
-
stewed,
past participle, past
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stewing
present participle
-
to undergo cooking by simmering or slow boiling.
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Informal. to fret, worry, or fuss.
He stewed about his chaotic state of affairs all day.
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to feel uncomfortable due to a hot, humid, stuffy atmosphere, as in a closed room; swelter.
noun
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a preparation of meat, fish, or other food cooked by stewing, especially a mixture of meat and vegetables.
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Informal. a state of agitation, uneasiness, or worry.
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a brothel; whorehouse.
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stews, a neighborhood occupied chiefly by brothels.
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Obsolete. a vessel for boiling or stewing.
idioms
noun
noun
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-
a dish of meat, fish, or other food, cooked by stewing
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( as modifier )
stew pot
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-
informal a difficult or worrying situation or a troubled state (esp in the phrase in a stew )
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a heterogeneous mixture
a stew of people of every race
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archaic (usually plural) a brothel
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obsolete a public room for hot steam baths
verb
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to cook or cause to cook by long slow simmering
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informal (intr) to be troubled or agitated
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informal (intr) to be oppressed with heat or crowding
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to cause (tea) to become bitter or (of tea) to become bitter through infusing for too long
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to suffer unaided the consequences of one's actions
noun
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a fishpond or fishtank
-
an artificial oyster bed
Synonym Usage
See boil 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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stewsimple
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stewssimple
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have stewedperfect
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has stewedperfect
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am stewingprogressive
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are stewingprogressive
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is stewingprogressive
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have been stewingperfect progressive
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has been stewingperfect progressive
Past
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stewedsimple
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had stewedperfect
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was stewingprogressive
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were stewingprogressive
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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
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As Brave as You
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"Familiar Places"
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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:
Red wine vinegar is wonderful with hearty lentil, bean and farro soups, and I love it in beef stew.
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
To this literary stew Mr. Power adds a brief sketch of Barrett Browning’s life, highlighting points at which her path crossed with Homer or led her toward her own efforts at epic verse.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
The stew seemed to be cabbage-based, and she inspected it for any meat as she spooned it into her bowl.
From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack
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
The fiery flavouring is a staple of dining tables regionwide, the obligatory accompaniment for everything from rice and peas, to curries and stews.
From BBC ● May 31, 2026
Grandma India was preparing more stews and casseroles with less meat and lots of rice and potatoes.
From "Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High" by Melba Pattillo Beals
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
"We have jerk pork, we have rice and peas, we have jerk chicken, curry goat, stewed chicken, fried dumpling and plantain," she said.
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 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
‘And lighting a fire was dangerous in these parts. But I do feel hungry. Hmm! Can I smell it from here? What have you stewed?’
From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien
The pair were disappointed and upset by the state of the world, and after a few years of stewing, Kugel and Montoya got started on a second album.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
There’s comfort in sitting and stewing in your discontent.
From Salon ● May 30, 2026
But Auriemma suggested that he’d been stewing since before the opening tipoff.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 4, 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
I go back to my room and sit on my squeaky bed, stewing and reading but mostly stewing.
From "Al Capone Does My Shirts" by Gennifer Choldenko
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
