steady

• steddy, stedy

From Middle English stede, stedi, stidiʒ, from Old English stæþþiġ, from stæþ (“stead, bank”); equivalent to stathe +‎ -y or stead +‎ -y. Cognate with West Frisian stadich (“slow”), Danish stedig, stadig, steeg, Swedish stadig, Icelandic stöðugur, Middle Dutch stedigh, German stätig, stetig.

• enPR: stĕdʹi, IPA^(key): /ˈstɛdi/

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steady (comparative steadier, superlative steadiest)

1. Firm in standing or position; not tottering or shaking; fixed; firm.

   Hold the ladder steady while I go up.

   • (Can we date this quote?) Sir Philip Sidney

     Their feet steady, their hands diligent, their eyes watchful, and their hearts resolute.

   • 1879, R[ichard] J[efferies], chapter 1, in The Amateur Poacher, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., […], OCLC 752825175, page 035:

     But then I had the flintlock by me for protection. ¶ There were giants in the days when that gun was made; for surely no modern mortal could have held that mass of metal steady to his shoulder. The linen-press and a chest on the top of it formed, however, a very good gun-carriage; and, thus mounted, aim could be taken out of the window, […].

   • 1910, Emerson Hough, chapter I, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, OCLC 639762314, page 0105:

     Captain Edward Carlisle, soldier as he was, martinet as he was, felt a curious sensation of helplessness seize upon him as he met her steady gaze, her alluring smile ; he could not tell what this prisoner might do.

2. Constant in feeling, purpose, or pursuit; not fickle, changeable, or wavering; not easily moved or persuaded to alter a purpose; resolute.

   a man steady in his principles, in his purpose, or in the pursuit of an object

3. Smooth and not bumpy or with obstructions.

   a steady ride

4. Regular and even.

   the steady course of the Sun;  a steady breeze of wind

5. Slow.

• unsteady

steady (third-person singular simple present steadies, present participle steadying, simple past and past participle steadied)

1. To stabilize something; to prevent from shaking.

steady (plural steadies)

1. A rest or support, as for the hand, a tool, or a piece of work.
2. (informal) A regular boyfriend or girlfriend.
3. (informal) A prostitute's regular customer.
   • 2013, Sheila Foster, Soho Whore

     Some of my steadies wanted me to go out with them on a date. Occasionally I let one of them take me to a film or out for a meal.

steady (not comparable)

1. (rowing, informal) To row with pressure at a low stroke-rating, often 18 strokes per minute.

   After the sprint pieces, we rowed steady for the rest of practice.

• steady in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• steady in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• steady at OneLook Dictionary Search

• stayed