cadet

English

Etymology

From French cadet, from Gascon Occitan capdet, from Latin capitellum, diminutive of caput (“head”). Attested in English from 1634.

Pronunciation

• (RP, US) IPA: /kəˈdɛt/
• Rhymes: -ɛt

Noun

cadet (plural cadets)

1. A student at a military school who is training to be an officer.
2. (largely historical) A younger or youngest son, who would not inherit as a firstborn son would.
3. (in compounds, chiefly in genealogy) Junior. (See also the heraldic term cadency.)

   a cadet branch of the family

Derived terms

• air cadet
• space cadet

Related terms

• cadette

Translations

a student at a military school who is training to be an officer

• Bulgarian: кадет (bg) (kadét) m, юнкер (bg) (júnker) m
• Finnish: kadetti (fi)
• French: cadet (fr) m
• German: Kadett (de) m
• Italian: cadetto (it) m

• Norwegian: kadett
• Polish: kadet m
• Russian: курсант (ru) (kursánt) m, кадет (ru) (kadét) m, юнкер (ru) (júnker) m (historical)
• Scottish Gaelic: òglach (gd) m

Anagrams

• acted, ectad

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French

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Adjective

cadet m (feminine cadette, masculine plural cadets, feminine plural cadettes)

1. (family) youngest

   le fils cadet

   the youngest son

Noun

cadet m (plural cadets)

1. cadet, student officer
2. junior sportsperson, young player
3. a younger sibling

See also

• benjamin

Anagrams

• cédât

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Latin

Verb

cadet

1. third-person singular future active indicative of cadō  "he (she, it) will fall"