dependant

British

/ dɪˈpɛndənt /

noun

a person who depends on another person, organization, etc, for support, aid, or sustenance, esp financial support

"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

Commonly Confused

See dependent

Explanation

A dependant is someone who relies on someone else, possibly for financial support. You'll most often find this spelling in British English, where it's favored (or favoured!) in using the word as a noun. Don't be confused by the spelling. In the UK, the -ant ending often shows up for the noun but not the adjective. In the US, the -ent ending is more popular for both the noun and adjective. Either way, this word has to do with reliance. Kids are dependants (or dependents) of their parents, which means they depend on them for food and shelter.

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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:

dependant

Volkswagen and Audi on Friday said their full-year financial guidance was dependant on an adequate supply of semiconductors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2025

Prof Jones said the future of the site was dependant on what kind of use the local planning authority would allow.

From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2025

From the next academic year, the threshold for families with one dependant will go up from £20,817 to £23,400 and for households with two or more dependents it will go up from £23,077 to £25,974.

From BBC ● Jan. 26, 2025

Laura Baggott, who has been organising the event since 2017, said: "It's always weather dependant and luckily we had sunshine."

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2024

In this City there's a famous Abbey of Nuns, which is a very honorable Retreat for young Women of Quality, who are Orphans, or don't care to be dependant on their Parents.

From The Memoirs of Charles-Lewis, Baron de Pollnitz, Volume III Being the Observations He Made in His Late Travels from Prussia thro' Germany, Italy, France, Flanders, Holland, England, &C. in Letters to His Friend. Discovering Not Only the Present State of the Chief Cities and Towns; but the Characters of the Principal Persons at the Several Courts. by Karl Ludwig von P?llnitz

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023