police cadet

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A recruit who is training to become a police officer and has not yet completed the course.

   Grammar: Countable: she is a police cadet at the academy.

   Patterns

   • a police cadet at something
   • become a police cadet

   As a police cadet, he spent six months learning law and first aid.

   The police cadets marched across the parade ground.

   She applied to become a police cadet after finishing school.

2. 2nouncountable

   A teenager in a youth program run by a police force that teaches discipline, community service and basic law enforcement.

   Grammar: Often in a volunteer program for young people.

   Patterns

   • join the police cadets

   My cousin joined the police cadets when he was fifteen.

   The police cadets helped direct traffic at the town parade.

   Police cadets visit schools to talk about safety.

Word forms

Common combinations

join the police cadets

He joined the police cadets at sixteen.

police cadet program

The police cadet program trains young volunteers.

police cadet uniform

She proudly wore her police cadet uniform.

train as a police cadet

He trained as a police cadet for a year.

Synonyms and how they differ

recruit

Recruit is a general word for someone newly enlisted, whereas police cadet specifies the police and often the training stage.

trainee officer

Trainee officer is a plain description; police cadet is the formal job title in many forces.

rookie

Rookie is informal and used for a new officer who has already started working, not one still in training.

Opposites

Word family

cadet noun

a young trainee, especially in the military or police

police noun

the force that enforces the law

policeman noun

a male police officer

policing noun

the work of keeping law and order

Commonly confused: police cadet or police officer?

Practice

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