# superintendent

Pronunciation: US say "soo-pur-in-TEN-duhnt" /ˌsjuːpəɹɪnˈtɛndənt/; UK say "soo-puh-rin-TEN-dunt" /ˌsuːpəɹɪnˈtɛndənt/

## Noun

1. Someone officially placed in charge of overseeing, directing, or managing something.
   - Simple: Someone who is in charge of running a place, group, or activity.
   - _The superintendent reviewed every department's budget before the meeting._
   - _Factory owners appointed a superintendent to oversee daily operations._
2. The manager of a building, usually one with many apartments, responsible for keeping it working and often collecting rent for or as the landlord.
   - Simple: The person who manages an apartment building, keeping things working and sometimes collecting rent.
   - _The superintendent collects rent from every tenant on the first of the month._
   - _When the elevator broke, residents complained to the building's superintendent._
3. In Commonwealth police forces, the rank between chief inspector and chief superintendent, or an officer holding it. *(Commonwealth)*
   - Simple: A senior police officer in Commonwealth countries, ranking just above a chief inspector.
   - _The superintendent briefed reporters on the progress of the case._
   - _Two superintendents coordinated security for the royal visit._
4. A person employed to clean and maintain a building, such as a school or office; a janitor. *(US)*
   - Simple: A person who cleans and takes care of a building, such as a school.
   - _The superintendent swept the corridors and emptied the trash bins each evening._
   - _Students waved to the superintendent as he repaired a broken locker._
5. In certain Protestant denominations, a senior minister responsible for supervising the clergy within a district.
   - Simple: In some Protestant churches, a senior minister who oversees the other ministers in an area.
   - _The superintendent ordained three new ministers at the spring assembly._
   - _Each pastor reported to the district superintendent twice a year._
6. The person in overall charge of running a Sunday school.
   - Simple: The person in charge of a Sunday school.
   - _The superintendent welcomed new families to the Sunday school each week._
   - _Under the new superintendent, the Sunday school doubled in size._

## Adjective

7. Having the role of overseeing or directing; superintending.
   - Simple: In charge of watching over and directing something.
   - _The commission was granted superintendent authority over the entire railway network._
   - _Parliament established a superintendent council to direct the colonies' affairs._

## Origin

This word comes from Ecclesiastical Latin 'superintendens', a calque of the Ancient Greek 'epískopos' (epískopos), which makes it distantly related to the English word 'bishop'.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/superintendent (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).