# curator

/ˈkjʊɹətɝ/ (US) · /kjʊɹˈeɪtɐ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/curator
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. museum or gallery manager

noun · CEFR B2

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

For teachers: 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.

### 2. digital or content organiser

noun · CEFR B2

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

For teachers: 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.

### 3. legal guardian

noun · CEFR C1 · Formal · Technical

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

For teachers: 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.

### 4. cricket groundsman

noun · CEFR C2 · British English · Dialect

a person who takes care of a cricket field.

For teachers: 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.

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

## Examples

- The curator chose paintings for the new exhibit.
- The museum curator spent months researching the history of each artifact before opening the display.
- As the lead curator, she balanced academic rigor with public engagement, ensuring the exhibition was both intellectually stimulating and visually accessible.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.