Stead

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /stɛd/

Definitions

1. A particular place or location ; a role or position taken over by someone else
2. The site or spot where something stands or is situated ; the use of one person or thing as a replacement or substitute in a role
3. An area of ground occupied by a structure or thing ; acting as a substitute or replacement for someone in a position or duty

Etymology: Its relatives in other languages have shifted toward "city." German "Stadt" and Dutch "stad" both mean "city" or "town," and the same root appears in Gothic "staþs," meaning "location" or "place." The urban sense grew from the older idea of a settled spot where people stood or lived. English kept the older sense. Old English "stede" meant "place" or "spot," descending from Proto-Germanic "*stadiz" and, further back, a prehistoric root meaning "standing" or "location." That same root produced "stasis," which is a doublet of this word, entering English through Greek. The sense of standing in for someone, as in "in someone's stead," builds on the same idea of occupying a place.

Synonyms: place, position, site

Antonyms: displacement, removal