French Word of the Day: Cadet

Local France

09-05-2025

Why do I need to know
cadet?
Because
this word has another usage outside of the military.
What does it mean?
Cadet
- roughly pronounced kah-day - is a word you might be familiar with in English, but it actually comes from France originally.
The term in English has a military connotation these days, but in France it still holds another meaning. It is used to refer to the second or youngest son (usually the son, or
fils cadet
, but occasionally daughter, or
fille cadette
).
As such, your French friend might introduce their toddler son as their
fils cadet
, or you might read a headline introducing a celebrity or politician's family with the children outlined in this way.
Originally, the word for the younger child was
puîné
, basically meaning
puis né
(born after), in contrast to
aîné
, which comes from the Old French
ainz né
(which itself evolved from the Latin
ante natus
).
People still use the term
aîné
to describe the oldest child, but most people don't use
puîné
anymore, as it has been replaced by cadet for some time.
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Cadet
has an interesting history. It comes from the Occitan term
capdet
, which likely came from Latin as well (
capitellus
, coming from
caput
, meaning head). It was a diminutive meaning 'little head' and eventually 'the younger' or 'the junior'.
As for the connection with the military - in the Middle Ages, the tradition for wealthy, land-owning families was that the first son inherited the property, while the second son joined the military and the third was sent to the clergy. In the 15th century, writers started referring to the Gascon officers in the military of the kings of France, many of whom were second sons.
Later on,
cadet
became the designation for a gentleman serving as a low officer or soldier.
Technically, a
cadet
(or
cadette
for girls) can be any child after the first, unlike the word
Benjamin
which is only ever used to refer to the last sibling (a reference to the Bible character of Benjamin, the last child of Jacob).
Use it like this
Ma fille cadette est plus sage que son âge. -
My youngest daughter is wiser than her years.
Le prince Harry est le fils cadet du roi Charles III au Royaume-Uni.
- Prince Harry is the younger son of King Charles III in the UK.