Dictionary
de•pend•ent
Pronunciation: (di-pen'dunt), [key]—
adj.
1. relying on someone or something else for aid, support, etc.
2. conditioned or determined by something else; contingent:
Our trip is dependent on the weather.
3. subordinate; subject:
a dependent territory.
4. Gram.not used in isolation; used only in connection with other forms. In
I walked out when the bell rang, when the bell rang is a dependent clause. Cf.
independent (def. 14),
main 1 (def. 4).
5. hanging down; pendent.
6. Math.
a. (of a variable) having values determined by one or more independent variables.
b. (of an equation) having solutions that are identical to those of another equation or to those of a set of equations.
7. Statistics.(of an event or a value) not statistically independent.
—
n.
1. a person who depends on or needs someone or something for aid, support, favor, etc.
2. a child, spouse, parent, or certain other relative to whom one contributes all or a major amount of necessary financial support:
She listed two dependents on her income-tax form.
3. Archaic.a subordinate part.
Also,dependant.Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
