supervision

noun

su·​per·​vi·​sion ˌsü-pər-ˈvi-zhən How to pronounce supervision (audio)
Synonyms of supervisionnext
: the action, process, or occupation of supervising
especially : a critical watching and directing (as of activities or a course of action)

Synonyms of supervision

Relevance
See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of supervision in a Sentence

Young children need constant supervision. She's responsible for the supervision of a large staff.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Access to affordable supervision should be strengthened. — Luis Contreras, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 June 2026 Just over a month later, on June 1, a judge lifted mandatory supervision for Paul's parent time with Ever. — Zoey Lyttle, PEOPLE, 1 July 2026 Neglectful supervision would fall under child endangerment in the Texas Penal Code. — Ella Gonzales, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 June 2026 On June 1, Minas lifted the supervision requirement for Taylor's parental visits. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 1 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for supervision

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of supervision was in the 15th century

Rhymes for supervision

See All Rhymes for supervision

Browse Nearby Words

supervisee
supervision
supervisor
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Supervision.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/supervision. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

supervision

noun
su·​per·​vi·​sion ˌsü-pər-ˈvizh-ən How to pronounce supervision (audio)
: the act of supervising
especially : a critical watching and directing (as of activities)

More from Merriam-Webster on supervision

Nglish: Translation of supervision for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All