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intendant

intendant

3 9.3
A person who runs a government or cultural organization like a theatre
  • noun
  • /ɪnˈtɛndənt/
  • Formal
translation icon : intendente
  • In some provinces such as Puebla and Veracruz, military officers had been appointed to the post of governor-intendant ever since the implementation of the reformed Bourbon administrative system in the 1780s.
  • intendants and subdelegates
  • provincial intendants
  • district intendants

Examples

  • In provinces with separate army commanders and provincial intendants, conflicts often produced acrimonious debates and clashes of jurisdiction.

    Academic text (1990)
  • The central viceregal administration, provincial intendants, district subdelegates, and urban governments lost power to the army.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Commerson, whose abilities even the Intendant had recognized while deploring his character, had found rare and beautiful plants, which were named for shipmates.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • However, as Bakewell argues, in the Americas, the presence of the intendant challenged the monopolistic powers of the Spanish governor.

    Academic text (2013)
  • Through their liberal economic outlook, intendants in Cuba forged alliances.

    Academic text (2013)
  • Although the military usually won, some intendants caused hardships and desertions by withholding army pay and provisions.

    Academic text (1990)
  • The Intendant of the Île-de-France afforded Commerson every facility to continue his scientific work.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • The presence of the Spanish, sometimes Cuban, intendant gave Creoles a powerful advocate for Cuban interests and an official who could contest the captain general's authority over matters of the island's modernization.

    Academic text (2013)
  • The governor's obstruction of the railroad must have been an affront to the intendant and Creole advocates, a position that would have only deepened local resentment toward his administration.

    Academic text (2013)
  • The intendant of the opera house ensured that every performance was flawlessly executed.

Synonyms

overseer
vsintendant
24 4.8

A person who watches and directs workers at places like a factory or construction site

oversees the whole organization especially in cultural or government settings
officeholder
vsintendant
  • Formal
8 4.4

A person who has an official job with power and responsibility in a government or organization

manages and runs an organization rather than merely holding office
presiding officer
vsintendant
  • Formal
3 6.1

A person who leads a meeting and makes sure it runs correctly

oversees organizations broadly rather than only leading meetings

Antonyms

21 4.8

Lower in rank or importance and under someone's control

How Senior

intendant
  • Formal
3 9.3
director
424 3.0
administrator
232 3.7
manager
1.6
supervisor
346 2.8

Surface Forms

intendant singular
intendants plural

Morphology

intendant = intend (opaque) = intend + ant

Although the form suggests 'intend' + '-ant', the sense 'administrator/manager' cannot be derived from the verb 'intend' by standard productive rules for learners.

Etymology

Intendant comes from the parts in- ('towards') and tendere ('to stretch' or 'to direct'), and it shares the same root as the English words intend and tend. So an intendant is someone who 'directs' or 'looks after' a place or organization, which is why the word means a manager or overseer.