superintendent

[ soo-per-in-ten-duhnt, soo-prin- ]

noun

1. a person who oversees or directs some work, enterprise, establishment, organization, district, etc.; supervisor.
2. a person who is in charge of maintenance and repairs of an apartment house; custodian.
3. a high-ranking police officer, especially a chief of police or an officer ranking next above an inspector.

adjective

1. superintending.

superintendent

/ ˌsuːpərɪnˈtɛndənt; ˌsuːprɪn- /

noun

1. a person who directs and manages an organization, office, etc
2. (in Britain) a senior police officer higher in rank than an inspector but lower than a chief superintendent
3. (in the US) the head of a police department
4. a caretaker, esp of a block of apartments

adjective

1. of or relating to supervision; superintending

Word History and Origins

Origin of superintendent¹

1545–55; < Medieval Latin superintendent- (stem of superintendēns ), present participle of superintendere to superintend; -ent

Word History and Origins

Origin of superintendent¹

C16: from Church Latin superintendens overseeing

Example Sentences

Maldonado, the Santa Barbara superintendent, said she initially heard similar complaints from teachers.

From Los Angeles Times

The superintendent has used the public education budget to purchase Trump-branded Bibles for Oklahoma classrooms.

From Salon

“We have also notified the property owners that we feel like their buildings are seismically prone and they may be considered soft story,” said David Khorram, Long Beach’s superintendent of building and safety.

From Los Angeles Times

The superintendent said that summer school increased the graduation rate from 86% to 87% as seniors were able to complete required course work.

From Los Angeles Times

“Our staff are spending enormous amounts of time just doing stupid stuff,” the superintendent said.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• administrator
• chief
• controller
• curator
• custodian
• director
• inspector
• manager
• supervisor