dependent

B1 Topic:People & Society

US /dɪˈpɛndənt/ See IPA manual

adj noun Freq #10207

Meanings

1

adj
Needing someone or something for support or in order to exist.

Young children are completely dependent on their parents.
2

noun
A person, especially a child, who relies on someone else for money and support.

She has three dependents, including her two children and her elderly mother.
3

adj
Unable to stop using a drug; addicted.

He became dependent on painkillers after the accident.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

3 adj · unable to stop using a... hooked

More contingentreliant

Opposites

independent self-reliant

Word family

Forms dependents

Derived forms antedependentcase-dependentco-dependentcontext-dependentcyber-dependentdependapotamusdependently dependinghyperdependentinter-dependentinterdependentlanguage-dependent

Related forms agreeable correspondent dependdependeedependence dependency depender friendly

Etymology

From Middle English dependaunt, dependent, from Middle French dependant (present participle of dependre (“to depend”)) and Latin dēpendēns (present participle of dēpendeō (“to depend”)). By surface analysis, depend + -ent.

dependaunt Middle English dependant Middle French dēpendēns Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

People & Society

# dependent

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** adj, noun
**IPA (US):** dɪˈpɛndənt
**Frequency rank:** 10207

## Meanings
1. Needing someone or something for support or in order to exist.
2. A person, especially a child, who relies on someone else for money and support.
3. Unable to stop using a drug; addicted.

## Examples
- Young children are completely dependent on their parents.
- She has three dependents, including her two children and her elderly mother.
- He became dependent on painkillers after the accident.

## Synonyms
- contingent
- reliant

## Antonyms
- independent
- self-reliant

## Derived Forms
- antedependent
- case-dependent
- co-dependent
- context-dependent
- cyber-dependent
- dependapotamus
- dependently
- depending
- hyperdependent
- inter-dependent
- interdependent
- language-dependent

## Related Forms
- agreeable
- correspondent
- depend
- dependee
- dependence
- dependency
- depender
- friendly

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: dependaunt
- Root: dependant
- Root: dēpendēns

## Etymology
From Middle English dependaunt, dependent, from Middle French dependant (present participle of dependre (“to depend”)) and Latin dēpendēns (present participle of dēpendeō (“to depend”)). By surface analysis, depend + -ent.

## AI Etymology
dependent comes from Middle English dependaunt, dependent, from Middle French dependant (present participle of dependre (“to depend”)) and Latin dēpendēns (present participle of dēpendeō (“to depend”)). By surface analysis, depend + -ent. The historical chain includes Middle English dependaunt, Middle French dependant, Latin dēpendēns. Current senses include Needing someone or something for support or in order to exist and A person, especially a child, who relies on someone else for money and support. English relatives and later formations include antedependent, case-dependent, co-dependent, agreeable, correspondent.

## Topics
- People & Society

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