cad

[kad]

See more synonyms for cad on Thesaurus.com

noun

an ill-bred man, especially one who behaves in a dishonorable or irresponsible way toward women.
British Archaic.
1. a local town boy or youth, as contrasted with a university or public school student.
2. a servant at a university or public school.

Origin of cad

1780–90; short for caddie, (in the sense “a person who runs errands and does odd jobs”)

Synonyms for cad

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1. bounder, rotter, rascal, rogue; heel.

CAD

[kad]

noun

computer-aided design.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for cad

bounder, boor, rake, rascal, dog, louse, rat, lout, creep, scoundrel, clown, heel, cur, stinker, rotter, worm

Examples from the Web for cad

Contemporary Examples of cad

Lift Tickets: Adult three-day passes begin at around $200 (CAD), depending on whenyou visit.
Olympians Dish on Their Favorite Spots to Ski & Snowboard
The Daily Beast
October 26, 2013
By the time of this third episode of Season 1, we were well aware of Don as a liar, cad, and adulterer.
The 10 Most Essential TV Episodes From ‘Sopranos,’ ‘Breaking Bad,’ and More
Brett Martin
June 30, 2013
A few minutes later she watched as the cad tore his hair out screaming on his front lawn.
Paula Broadwell, Eminem, & More Spurned Lovers Who Went Ballistic
Paula Froelich
November 15, 2012
From a jealous weatherman to a Canadian cad, WATCH VIDEO of the cringe-worthy men of The Bachelorette.
TV's 6 Most Toxic Bachelors
The Daily Beast Video
June 28, 2010
Ali Fedotowsky is the latest reality star looking for love, but instead she found a jealous weatherman and a Canadian cad.
TV's 6 Most Toxic Bachelors
The Daily Beast Video
June 28, 2010

Historical Examples of cad

"I may be pretty rotten, but I'm not that kind of cad," said he.
Viviette
William J. Locke
Wasn't that cad of a Bordenave going to go off the hooks after all?
Nana, The Miller's Daughter, Captain Burle, Death of Olivier Becaille
Emile Zola
It was on her soil and through her influence that a silly woman had married a cad.
Where Angels Fear to Tread
E. M. Forster
I was a cad to play about your fireplace––quite wrong––and you had to make me realize it.
The Gorgeous Girl
Nalbro Bartley
The first time—it was the act of a cad—but I worked it all out.
Love and Lucy
Maurice Henry Hewlett

British Dictionary definitions for cad

cad

noun

British informal, old-fashioned a man who does not behave in a gentlemanly manner towards others

Derived Formscaddish, adjective

Word Origin for cad

C18: shortened from caddie

CAD

n acronym for

computer-aided design

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for cad

1730, shortening of cadet (q.v.); originally used of servants, then (1831) of town boys by students at British universities and public schools (though at Cambridge it meant "snob"). Meaning "person lacking in finer feelings" is from 1838.

A cad used to be a jumped-up member of the lower classes who was guilty of behaving as if he didn't know that his lowly origin made him unfit for having sexual relationships with well-bred women. [Anthony West, "H.G. Wells: Aspects of a Life," 1984]