stead

1 of 2

noun

1
: the office, place, or function ordinarily occupied or carried out by someone or something else
acted in his brother's stead
2
: advantage
used chiefly in the phrase to stand one in good stead
3
obsolete : locality, place

stead

2 of 2

verb

steaded; steading; steads

transitive verb

: to be of avail to : help

Examples of stead in a Sentence

Noun a summer internship will stand you in good stead when applying to college
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
In his stead came Travis Glover, a 2024 sixth round draft pick who played just 13 snaps during the regular season last year. Rob Reischel, Forbes.com, 24 July 2025 In their stead come loads more fresh and thrilling releases, covered in our 'What's Coming to Netflix in July 2025?' article. Griff Griffin, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 July 2025 Fever assistant Austin Kelly — who acted as head coach Saturday in the stead of Stephanie White, who was away from the team for personal reasons — remembered watching the Bulls on box TVs in hotel rooms while traveling with his AAU team during the ’90s. Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 8 June 2025 In his stead at the moment is Ryan Yarbrough, the veteran finesse lefty who Cashman snapped up off the scrap heap after his release from the Blue Jays in March and has pitched well in all four of his starts and one long relief appearance. Bill Madden, New York Daily News, 31 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for stead

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English stede, from Old English; akin to Old High German stat place, Old English standan to stand — more at stand

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of stead was before the 12th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Stead.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stead. Accessed 3 Aug. 2025.

Kids Definition

stead

noun
ˈsted
1
: advantage sense 3, service
their knowledge of French stood them in good stead
2
: the place usually taken or duty carried out by the one mentioned
acted in the mayor's stead

More from Merriam-Webster on stead

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