tutelage
Americannoun
-
the act of guarding, protecting, or guiding; office or function of a guardian; guardianship.
-
instruction; teaching; guidance.
His knowledge of Spanish increased under private tutelage.
- Synonyms:
- supervision, direction
-
the state of being under a guardian or a tutor.
noun
-
the act or office of a guardian or tutor
-
instruction or guidance, esp by a tutor
-
the condition of being under the supervision of a guardian or tutor
Etymology
Origin of tutelage
1595–1605; < Latin tūtēl ( a ) guardianship (derivative of tuērī to watch; see tuition) + -age
Explanation
If you babysit and tutor younger children after school, the kids are under your tutelage. You are responsible for their care and education. Tutelage can mean guardianship as well as teaching and sometimes it's difficult to tell which sense is meant. If an athlete is under the tutelage of his coach, the coach teaches him but is also responsible for the athlete's health and well-being. When the word describes a situation where one country or culture takes charge of another, it's more clear that management and guardianship are meant.
Vocabulary lists containing tutelage
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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.
The teenager is under the tutelage of controversial Eteri Tutberidze - the coach of Kamila Valieva at the last Olympics - who was rinkside during Petrosian's pre-skate.
From BBC • Feb. 19, 2026
“Understandably, many are willing to accept American tutelage as the price to pay.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 19, 2026
They responded in kind, producing an evolving and unparalleled music under his tutelage.
From Salon • Jan. 15, 2026
They could then be fertilized before journey’s end, and the babies raised “under the tutelage of cybernetic nurses who would teach them their inheritance and their destiny when they were capable of understanding it.”
From Slate • Dec. 9, 2025
Under his tutelage, I learned artificing as quickly as I learned everything, and it wasn’t long before we worked our way up to more complex projects like heat-eaters and sympathy lamps.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
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.
