Definition

Noun 1. A separate room or area in a hospital for patients with similar medical conditions. * The hospital has a dedicated pediatric ward. * After surgery, she was moved to the recovery ward.

1. An administrative division of a city, town, or borough, often for electoral purposes.

   • She is the council member representing the north ward.
   • The city is divided into twelve electoral wards.

2. A division of a prison.

   • The new inmates were assigned to the maximum-security ward.

3. (Law) A person, especially a minor, placed under the legal protection or care of a guardian or court.

   • The court declared the child a ward of the state.

Verb 1. (Archaic) To guard or protect. * The knight vowed to ward the castle gates.

Examples of Usage

• Noun (Hospital Area):

  • Visiting hours for the maternity ward are from 2 PM to 8 PM.
  • He works as a nurse in the psychiatric ward.

• Noun (Administrative District):

  • Our local ward is holding a community meeting tonight.
  • Each ward elects its own representative to the city council.

• Noun (Legal Charge):

  • When her parents died, she became her uncle's ward.

• Verb (Archaic - to guard):

  • The soldiers warded the pass against invaders.

Advanced Usage

• "Ward of the court/state": A person, typically a child, placed under the protection and supervision of a court or government agency.
  • The neglected children were made wards of the court.

Variants and Related Words

• Wardrobe (n): A tall cabinet for storing clothes.
• Warden (n): A person responsible for the supervision of a particular place or thing (e.g., prison warden, game warden).
• Wardship (n): The state of being a ward; guardianship.
• Wardroom (n): A room on a warship for commissioned officers.

Synonyms

• Noun (Hospital Area): Unit, wing, department.
• Noun (District): District, precinct, division, zone.
• Noun (Legal Charge): Charge, dependent, protégé.
• Verb: Guard, protect, defend, shield.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Ward off: To prevent something bad from happening or approaching; to repel.
  • She took vitamin C to ward off a cold.
  • He raised his arm to ward off the blow.

Related Idioms

• To keep watch and ward: (Archaic) To maintain a careful and protective watch.
  • The sentries kept watch and ward over the castle through the night.

Noun

1. a division of a prison (usually consisting of several cells)
2. United States businessman who in 1872 established a successful mail-order business (1843-1913)
3. English writer of novels who was an active opponent of the women's suffrage movement (1851-1920)
4. English economist and conservationist (1914-1981)
5. block forming a division of a hospital (or a suite of rooms) shared by patients who need a similar kind of care
   • they put her in a 4-bed ward
6. a district into which a city or town is divided for the purpose of administration and elections
7. a person who is under the protection or in the custody of another

Verb

1. watch over or shield from danger or harm; protect
   • guard my possessions while I'm away