stew

[ stoo, styoo ]

/ stu, styu /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR stew

verb (used with object)

to cook (food) by simmering or slow boiling.

verb (used without object)

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.

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Question 1 of 9

You may have read the word "simmer" in a recipe or two, but what does it really mean?

To cook in water that begins cold and then reaches a boil.

To stew in a sauce for a long time.

To cook in water, just below boiling temperature.

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Idioms for stew

stew in one's own juice, to suffer the consequences of one's own actions.

Origin of stew

1350–1400; Middle English stewen, stuwen to take a sweat bath <Middle French estuver, verbal derivative of estuve sweat room of a bath; see stove¹

SYNONYMS FOR stew

5 ragout.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR stew

synonym study for stew

1. See boil¹.

OTHER WORDS FROM stew

stew·a·ble, adjective

Definition for stew (2 of 2)

stew²

[ stoo, styoo ]

/ stu, styu /

noun Slang.

a male or female flight attendant.

Origin of stew

1970–1975; shortening of steward or stewardess

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for stew

To originate a smash means more tasting than there is when there is no use in stewing more than has been put in there to stay.
Geography and Plays|Gertrude Stein
We never have regular tea; but you can always get some when you want: the servants keep it stewing all day.
Heartbreak House|George Bernard Shaw
Braising is a combination of stewing on the top of the range, and baking in the oven, with or without vegetables.
Better Meals for Less Money|Mary Green
Mix in a cup three spoonsful of flour and one-half cup of water, and stir into the stewing chicken.
The Hotel St. Francis Cook Book|Victor Hirtzler

On this she is now boiling potatoes, stewing some chicken-broth, heating a kettle of water, and has a large bread-pudding inside.
Woman's Work in the Civil War|Linus Pierpont Brockett

British Dictionary definitions for stew (1 of 2)

stew¹

/ (stjuː) /

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 mixturea stew of people of every race

(usually plural) archaic a brothel

obsolete a public room for hot steam baths

verb

to cook or cause to cook by long slow simmering

(intr) informal to be troubled or agitated

(intr) informal to be oppressed with heat or crowding

to cause (tea) to become bitter or (of tea) to become bitter through infusing for too long

stew in one's own juice to suffer unaided the consequences of one's actions

Word Origin for stew

C14 stuen to take a very hot bath, from Old French estuver, from Vulgar Latin extūfāre (unattested), from ex- 1 + (unattested) tūfus vapour, from Greek tuphos

British Dictionary definitions for stew (2 of 2)

stew²

/ (stjuː) /

noun British

a fishpond or fishtank

an artificial oyster bed

Word Origin for stew

C14: from Old French estui, from estoier to shut up, confine, ultimately from Latin studium study

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

Idioms and Phrases with stew

stew

In addition to the idiom beginning with stew

stew in one's own juice

also see:

in a stew

MEANINGS

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stew

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

noun

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Idioms for stew

Origin of stew

SYNONYMS FOR stew

synonym study for stew

OTHER WORDS FROM stew

Definition for stew (2 of 2)

noun Slang.

Origin of stew

Example sentences from the Web for stew

British Dictionary definitions for stew (1 of 2)

noun

verb

Word Origin for stew

British Dictionary definitions for stew (2 of 2)

noun British

Word Origin for stew

Idioms and Phrases with stew

MEANINGS

WORD GAMES

LEARN

WRITING

WORD OF THE DAY

stew

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

noun

QUIZZES

BECOME A PRO CHEF WITH THIS EXQUISITE CUISINE QUIZ!

Idioms for stew

Origin of stew

SYNONYMS FOR stew

synonym study for stew

OTHER WORDS FROM stew

Definition for stew (2 of 2)

noun Slang.

Origin of stew

Words related to stew

Example sentences from the Web for stew

British Dictionary definitions for stew (1 of 2)

noun

verb

Word Origin for stew

British Dictionary definitions for stew (2 of 2)

noun British

Word Origin for stew

Idioms and Phrases with stew