What does "dependent" mean?
A person who relies on another for support or sustenance, particularly financial support.
Dependent
/dɪˈpɛndənt/ adj, noun
adj, noun ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A person who relies on another for support or sustenance, particularly financial support.
- Grammar: dependent is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: accessory, accidental, addicted, addicted to.
- Useful contrasts: independent, self-reliant, agential role.
- Usage evidence: When talking about your last results, it is dependent on the last examination.
How to use "dependent"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "dependent" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "dependent" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "dependent" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "dependent" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "dependent" is acting as adj, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "accessory" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "dependent", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A person who relies on another for support or sustenance, particularly financial support. US
"With two children and an ailing mother, she had three dependents in all."
- 2 a person who relies on another person for support (especially financial support) wordnet
- 3 An element in phrase or clause structure that is not the head. Includes complements, modifiers and determiners. US
- 4 The aorist subjunctive or subjunctive perfective: a form of a verb not used independently but preceded by a particle to form the negative or a tense form. Found in Greek and in the Gaelic languages. US
- 5 dependent (origination), in Buddhism, the idea that the existence of everything is conditional and dependent on a cause, and that nothing happens fortuitously or by chance. US
Adjective
- 1 Relying upon; depending upon.
"At that point I was dependent on financial aid for my tuition."
- 2 Having a probability that is affected by the outcome of a separate event.
"The formula for finding the probability of one event followed by a dependent event is written P(A, B) = P(A) × P(B/A) where P(B/A) is read “the probability of B given A.”"
- 3 Used after a particle (with one or two exceptions), such as those which express questions, subordinate clauses, and negative sentences.
- 4 Of part of the body: positioned lower than the heart, like the legs while standing up, or the back while supine.
"Several groups have shown that the gravitational distribution of pleural pressure is much more uniform when animals are in a prone rather than in a supine position, […] After volume-infusion-induced pulmonary oedema, Ppl was positive in the dependent lung regions in supine animals but much less positive in those in the prone position."
- 5 Hanging down.
"a dependent bough or leaf"
Adjective
- 1 addicted to a drug wordnet
- 2 contingent on something else wordnet
- 3 relying on or requiring a person or thing for support, supply, or what is needed wordnet
- 4 (of a clause) unable to stand alone syntactically as a complete sentence wordnet
- 5 being under the power or sovereignty of another or others wordnet
Show 1 more definition
- 6 held from above and hanging down wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"When talking about your last results, it is dependent on the last examination."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "dependent"?
Common synonyms include: accessory, accidental, addicted, addicted to, addicts, adherent.
How do you use "dependent" in a sentence?
When talking about your last results, it is dependent on the last examination.
How do you pronounce "dependent"?
Pronounced /dɪˈpɛndənt/.
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.