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The Evolution of Cavalier
Mount up, fellow language caballeros! We think you’ll agree that the origins of cavalier make a great deal of horse sense. The noun cavalier—which traces back to the Late Latin word caballārius, meaning “horseback rider,” and even further to the Latin word for “work horse,” caballus—originally referred to a gentleman or knight trained in arms and horsemanship. The adjective trotted into English just a few decades after the noun, first describing those thought to embody qualities of gallantry and suaveness associated with such soldiers. However, the English Puritans later applied the noun with disdain to their adversaries, the swashbuckling royalist followers of Charles I, who sported longish hair and swords. Their use undoubtedly contributed to the adjective’s “flippant” sense, which is now the most common. To saddle someone (or their behavior, attitude, etc.) with the descriptor today is to say that they do not demonstrate the expected or required care for serious matters.
Examples of cavalier in a Sentence
Kathy Barnes, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 May 2025
But economists warn that Americans would be losing clear benefits if the government was too cavalier about the dollar’s shedding its special status.
—Colby Smith, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2025
Kristen Bateman, Vogue, 1 Dec. 2024
Opal is described as a 5-pound red/brown cavapoo — a mix of a King Charles cavalier and a poodle.
—Mike Stunson, Kansas City Star, 9 July 2024
See All Example Sentences for cavalier
Cite this Entry
“Cavalier.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cavalier. Accessed 29 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
cavalier
1 of 2 noun
cavalier
2 of 2 adjective
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