guardian Meaning, Definition & Usage

Guard"i*an noun

Etymology

OF. guardain, gardien, F. gardien, LL. guardianus. See Guard, v. t., and cf. Wasden.

Definitions

1. One who guards, preserves, or secures; one to whom any person or thing is committed for protection, security, or preservation from injury; a warden.
2. (Law) One who has, or is entitled to, the custody of the person or property of an infant, a minor without living parents, or a person incapable of managing his own affairs.

   Of the several species of guardians, the first are guardians by nature. -- viz., the father and (in some cases) the mother of the child. Blockstone.

Guard"i*an adjective

Definitions

1. Performing, or appropriate to, the office of a protector; as, a guardian care.