warder

UK: /ˈwɔː^rdə^r/ US: (wôr′dər)

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

ward•er¹  (wôr′dər), n. 

1. a person who guards something, as a doorkeeper or caretaker.
2. a soldier or other person set to guard an entrance.
3. British Terms [Chiefly Brit.] an official having charge of prisoners in a jail.

• Middle English
• 1350–1400; Middle English warder(e) (see ward, -er¹); compare Anglo-French wardere

ward′er•ship′, n. 

ward•er²  (wôr′dər), n. 

1. a truncheon or staff of office or authority, used in giving signals.

• ?
• late Middle English 1400–50

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

warder / ˈwɔːdə/, (feminine)wardress noun

1. an officer in charge of prisoners in a jail
2. a person who guards or has charge of something

Etymology: 14th Century: from Anglo-French wardere, from Old French warder to guard, of Germanic origin