cadete

Cadete is a term used in Spanish and Portuguese to denote a cadet: a person undergoing training to join the military, police, coast guard, or other uniformed services, or a student at a military or police academy. In many contexts, cadete also serves as a rank or designation within certain organizations, indicating a trainee rather than a fully qualified member. The word derives from the French cadet, meaning younger son, and has spread to several Romance-language communities to refer to someone in training or in a junior status within a service.

In Spain, Portugal and much of Latin America, cadete is commonly used for students in officer‑training programs and for junior members of cadet corps. In these systems, cadetes typically attend a dedicated academy or preparatory program that leads to entry into higher service education and, potentially, a commission. The term is also used in naval, aviation and police academies to label persons in initial stages of their careers.

Outside formal military use, cadete can appear in historical or organizational contexts to denote a trainee wing or youth arm of a service, or as part of the name of a cadet corps. In English-speaking contexts the cognate term is cadet, while cadete corresponds to the romance-language equivalents.