cavalier
noun
a horseman, especially a mounted soldier; knight.
cavalier
American
[kav-uh-leer, kav-uh-leer]
/ ˌkæv əˈlɪər, ˈkæv əˌlɪər /
noun
-
cavaliers
plural
-
a horseman, especially a mounted soldier; knight.
-
one having the spirit or bearing of a knight; a courtly gentleman; gallant.
-
a man escorting a woman or acting as her partner in dancing.
-
(initial capital letter) an adherent of Charles I of England in his contest with Parliament.
adjective
-
haughty, disdainful, or supercilious.
an arrogant and cavalier attitude toward others.
- Synonyms:
- condescending, thoughtless, uncaring, offhand, indifferent
-
offhand or unceremonious.
The very dignified officials were confused by his cavalier manner.
-
(initial capital letter) of or relating to the Cavaliers.
-
(initial capital letter) of, relating to, or characteristic of the Cavalier poets or their work.
verb (used without object)
-
to play the cavalier.
-
to be haughty or domineering.
cavalier
1
British
/ ˌkævəˈlɪə /
adjective
noun
-
a gallant or courtly gentleman, esp one acting as a lady's escort
-
archaic a horseman, esp one who is armed
Cavalier
2
British
/ ˌkævəˈlɪə /
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of cavalier
First recorded in 1590–1600; from Middle French: “horseman, knight,” from Old Italian cavaliere, from Old Provençal, from Late Latin caballārius “man on horseback,” equivalent to Latin caball(us) “horse” ( cf. capercaillie) + -ārius -ary
Explanation
Someone who is cavalier has a dismissive attitude and regards other people as inferior. If you think you know more than your teacher and never bother doing homework, your parents might complain that you are cavalier about your studies. The word cavalier dates from mid-16th-century French, from the Latin caballus, meaning “horse.” If you have a cavalier attitude, you look down on other people — as if you are sitting on a very tall horse and other people are sitting down there on the ground.
Vocabulary lists containing cavalier
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
She isn't cavalier enough to jettison everything, though: Both 7 Rings and her Lady Gaga duet Rain On Me raise the roof.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
Divine might have picked up his cavalier attitude toward precedent while clerking for Justice Clarence Thomas during the Supreme Court’s 2020–21 term.
From Slate ● Jul. 1, 2026
Much of the world still thinks of Latin American organized crime in terms of cut-throat cocaine cartels and cavalier capos like Pablo Escobar.
From Barron's ● Jun. 23, 2026
Travolta’s never been cavalier about his passion for flying and aeronautics, but rarely has he spoken as candidly about the source of that love as he does in “Propeller One-Way Night Coach.”
From Salon ● Jun. 10, 2026
How can he accuse Vincent of being cavalier in his painting?
From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman
When police opened the roll-up door, they found 21 Cavalier King Charles Spaniels confined inside, several of which were pregnant.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 14, 2026
This year he has brought two Bernese, a Border Collie, a Pomeranian and a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.
From Barron's ● Mar. 5, 2026
Elvira is one of Oliver Cromwell’s Puritans and Arturo a Cavalier, a supporter of the Stuart royal family.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026
Bozy, a Cavalier King Charles spaniel, almost didn’t make it a year.
From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2024
Linton and Judge Willmore pressed him on whether he could be indigent if he just bought the Chevy Cavalier.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
She said her cavaliers “saved our life” after she and her husband lost two sons, 17-year-old Matthew in a 2001 car crash and 36-year-old Scott, who had multiple disabilities, in 2010.
From Seattle Times ● May 8, 2023
He wished that his knights for the battle would thirst, But his “brave” cavaliers were, quite simply, The Worst.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 21, 2022
For instance, in the Waltz of the Flowers, the four cavaliers, suited up hilariously as tuxedoed bumblebees, toss the ballerinas in quick succession, avoiding airborne collisions by seconds.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 12, 2015
At United, that could never be enough, no matter how denuded the playing resources and therefore deluded the cavaliers.
From BBC ● Apr. 22, 2014
Bored of these women, bored of these cavaliers who masqueraded as companions, bored of everything.
From "Throne of Glass" by Sarah J. Maas
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
