English Reference

Word

curator

Phoneticscu·ra·tor

US/ˈkjʊɹətɝ/

UK/kjʊɹˈeɪtɐ/

Definitions

01museum or gallery manager

B2

n. a person whose job is to look after the objects in a museum or art gallery.

n. a professional responsible for the acquisition, preservation, and display of items in a museum, gallery, or archive.

“The curator spent months deciding which paintings to include in the new exhibition.”

“The senior curator at the National Gallery is currently overseeing the restoration of several seventeenth-century Dutch landscapes before the retrospective opens next spring.”

02digital or content organiser

B2 · Computing

n. someone who selects and organises content, like music or articles, for others to enjoy.

n. an individual who selects, organises, and presents digital content or information for a specific audience.

“She works as a content curator for a popular music streaming app.”

“As a digital curator, his primary responsibility involves filtering vast amounts of data to provide users with a streamlined and relevant news feed.”

Synonyms

editororganiser

03legal guardian

C1 · Law

n. a person chosen by a court to manage the money or property of someone who cannot do it themselves.

n. a person appointed by a court to manage the estate or affairs of a minor or a person deemed legally incompetent.

“The court appointed a curator to manage the elderly man's finances.”

“Following the sudden disappearance of the property owner, the court designated a curator to oversee the estate's assets until a legal heir could be identified.”

Formal · Technical

Synonyms

guardiantrusteeconservator

04cricket groundsman

C2 · Sport

n. a person who takes care of a cricket field.

n. a person responsible for the preparation and maintenance of a cricket pitch and its surrounding field.

“The curator checked the grass on the pitch every morning before the match.”

“The head curator faced significant pressure to prepare a fast, bouncy pitch that would favour the home team's pace bowlers during the final test match.”

British English · Dialect

Usage

Commonly used in Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.

Synonyms

groundsmangroundskeeper

Real-World Examples

“Samantha Thompson , astronomy curator at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum , saw a total eclipse for the first time in 2017.”
Smithsonian Magazine · 28 Jul 2026
“The film’s guide is Dianne Kurta, the museum’s long-time curator, who at the time of filming was stepping back due to health issues.”
Aeon · 17 Aug 2026
“David Woolcock, curator at Paradise Park, said staff were pleased to be sourcing the fish locally.”
BBC News · 15 Aug 2026

Etymology

From Latin cūrātor (“one who has care of a thing, a manager, guardian, trustee”), from cūrāre (“to take care of”), from cūra (“care, heed, attention, anxiety, grief”).

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry

Level
B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency
Frequent
Updated

Scan code

englishreference.com/q/curator

English Reference