I. de ‧ pen ‧ dant BrE AmE British English , dependent American English /dɪˈpendənt/ noun [countable]
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ dependant , ↑ dependence ≠ ↑ independence , ↑ dependency ; adverb : ↑ dependably , ↑ independently ; adjective : ↑ dependable , ↑ dependent ≠ ↑ independent ; verb : ↑ depend ]
someone, especially a child, who depends on you for food, clothes, money etc
II. de ‧ pen ‧ dent 1 W3 /dɪˈpendənt/ BrE AmE adjective
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ dependant , ↑ dependence ≠ ↑ independence , ↑ dependency ; adverb : ↑ dependably , ↑ independently ; adjective : ↑ dependable , ↑ dependent ≠ ↑ independent ; verb : ↑ depend ]
1 . needing someone or something in order to exist, be successful, be healthy etc OPP independent
dependent on/upon
Norway’s economy is heavily dependent on natural resources.
Jan’s mother was dependent on her for physical care.
Do you have any dependent children (=who you are still supporting financially) ?
2 . ↑ addicted to drugs, alcohol etc
dependent on/upon
the needs of people dependent on drugs
a danger of becoming alcohol dependent
3 . be dependent on/upon something to be directly affected or decided by something else:
Your pay is dependent on how much you produce.
III. dependent 2 BrE AmE noun [countable]
the American spelling of ↑ dependant