cadet

noun

ca·​det kə-ˈdet How to pronounce cadet (audio)
plural cadets
1
a
: a younger brother or son
b
: youngest son
c
: a younger branch of a family or a member of it
2
a
: a person in training for a military or naval commission
especially : a student in a service academy
b
: a student at a police academy : a person who is in training to become a police officer
During his swearing-in speech last August, the 54-year-old head cop pointed out that he still wears the same size uniform that he wore when he was a cadet at the Police Academy 34 years ago.Bernard C. Parks
3
slang : pimp
cadetship noun

Examples of cadet in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The Prince of Wales was back at the Royal Navy training college in Dartmouth, Devon early on Thursday to see the latest cadets graduate — or pass out — ahead of their military service. Simon Perry, Peoplemag, 14 Dec. 2023 Each summer, all 1,200 West Point cadets have to throw at least one M67 grenade. Dave Philipps, New York Times, 11 Dec. 2023 The all-male Virginia Military Institute did not have a single Black cadet until 1968. Brandi Kellam, ProPublica, 5 Sep. 2023 These officers were assigned to both the grounds of the Phoenix Open and the Birds Nest each day, with four to five volunteer cadet officers joining toward the second half of the day, according to Sempsis. The Arizona Republic, 23 Feb. 2024 Turley is currently a senior and a cadet lieutenant colonel in the program. Emma Hall, Sacramento Bee, 23 Feb. 2024 The soldier described his fellow academy cadets as coming from across the global south. Sugam Pokharel, CNN, 11 Feb. 2024 More than 30 Ukrainian cadets, who were over 18, were sent to a navy base at the Russian port of Novorossiysk for training. Carlotta Gall, New York Times, 27 Dec. 2023 An enormous mural mounted inside the college’s chapel depicts the VMI corps of cadets’ charge across the New Market battlefield. Ian Shapira, Washington Post, 16 Sep. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cadet.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, going back to Middle French, borrowed from Gascon (15th-century) capdet "chief, captain" (Old Occitan capdel), going back to Vulgar Latin *capitellus "leader," from Latin capit-, caput "head" + -ellus, diminutive suffix, originally from noun stems ending in -ul-, -r-, and -n- — more at head entry 1

Note: Compare capital entry 3, caudillo. In the fifteenth century the younger sons of Gascon nobles, lacking an inheritance, were recruited into the French army to learn the military profession. In this context the Gascon word was loaned into French, but with the sense "younger son," the characteristic feature of these men to the French, rather than with its Gascon meaning. The Gascon connection was soon lost. The -t of capdet shows the peculiar outcome of Latin geminate -ll- in Gascon. The cluster -pd- was simplified in French to -d-.

First Known Use

1610, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of cadet was in 1610

Dictionary Entries Near cadet

Cite this Entry

“Cadet.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cadet. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

cadet

noun
ca·​det kə-ˈdet How to pronounce cadet (audio)
1
: a student military officer
2
: a student at a military school
cadetship noun
Etymology

from French cadet "a younger brother or son, one training for military service," derived from Latin capitellum, literally, "little (younger) head or chief," from caput "head" — related to cad, caddie, capital, captain, chief see Word History at caddie

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