# caveat

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈkævɪæt/ · frequency rank #23,776

## Definitions
1. A warning.
2. A qualification or exemption.
3. A formal objection.
4. A formal objection.
5. A notice requesting a postponement of a court proceeding.

## Etymology
Learned borrowing from Latin caveat (“may he/she/it beware”), third-person singular present active subjunctive of caveō (“I beware of”). Doublet of show, both ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewh₁- (“to heed, look, feel, take note of”).

## Easily confused with
- **cheat** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caveat-vs-cheat)
- **caves** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caveat-vs-caves)
- **caved** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caveat-vs-caved)
- **covet** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caveat-vs-covet)
- **covert** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caveat-vs-covert)
- **caviar** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caveat-vs-caviar)
- **cavern** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caveat-vs-cavern)
- **covent** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caveat-vs-covent)
- **caveman** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caveat-vs-caveman)
- **cave** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cave-vs-caveat)
- **cava** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cava-vs-caveat)
- **cadet** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cadet-vs-caveat)
- **carat** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/carat-vs-caveat)
- **Calvert** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/calvert-vs-caveat)

## Common misspellings (8)
`acveat`, `caevat`, `cavaet`, `caveatt`, `caveta`, `cavveat`, `ccaveat`, `cvaeat`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/caveat