What does stewardess mean?
A stewardess is a woman employed to serve and attend passengers, especially on an aircraft, where the work includes checking safety equipment, explaining procedures, serving food and drink, and responding to requests. In older airline terminology, stewardess was the standard job title for a female cabin crew member. It can also refer to a woman attending passengers aboard a passenger ship. The word is now much less common in everyday professional use because flight attendant and cabin crew member are neutral, inclusive alternatives that describe the role regardless of gender. Nevertheless, stewardess remains readily understood and appears frequently in historical accounts, biographies, and discussions of changing workplace language. Its explicit gender marking distinguishes it from those neutral titles, while its service role links it to the older occupational term steward, from which it was formed with the female suffix -ess.
nounA woman employed to serve and attend passengers aboard an aircraft, passenger ship, or similar passenger service, especially an airline flight attendant.
- A female member of an airline's cabin crew who attends passengers, gives safety information, and serves food and drink.
- A woman employed aboard a passenger ship or similar vessel to attend passengers and serve meals or refreshments.
"The former airline stewardess spent the afternoon answering questions from aviation students."
"She began her career as an airline stewardess before moving into aviation management."
"A stewardess on the overnight ferry brought passengers tea and breakfast."
This is the standard plural form, though it now appears most often in historical or biographical contexts.
"A memorial honored three retired stewardesses who had flown for the airline."
Once a standard job title for women in aviation, stewardess has largely given way to the gender-neutral flight attendant.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of stewardess
Stewardess was formed in the early 20th century by adding the feminine occupational suffix -ess to the older word steward. Steward was borrowed into Middle English from Old French and ultimately comes from Germanic roots associated with guarding or overseeing an estate, livestock, or other property. The derivative stewardess originally distinguished a female passenger-service employee from her male counterpart, but later became closely associated with airline cabin crew.
How stewardess is actually used
The term is now less common in current professional usage in British and North American English, where flight attendant or cabin crew member is generally preferred as a gender-neutral alternative. It remains common in historical, nostalgic, and biographical contexts.
Easily confused with stewardess
A steward is a gender-neutral term for a person who serves passengers aboard an aircraft or ship, whereas a stewardess specifically denotes a woman.