From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishsteadstead /sted/ noun 1 → do something in somebody’s stead2 → stand/serve/hold somebody in good stead
Examples from the Corpus
stead• If some one would die in Admetus' stead, he could live.• The change in the secretary general is likely to stand her in good stead with committee Chairman Jesse Helms, R-N.• Those contacts, he says, still serve him in good stead today.• These shoes had stood him in good stead.• They have stood the Royal Navy in good stead.• If you develop good habits they will stand you in good stead in your business and managerial career.• The 356 series was about to die and in its stead was coming the 911.• A man-made clock would certainly prove a useful accessory to astronomical reckoning but could never stand in its stead.Origin stead Old English stede “place” 