There’s often a lot of confusion regarding the word “dependant” versus “dependent.” If you open a Word file loaded with the default US English dictionary, you will likely see that “dependant” is treated as a misspelled word and displayed with the standard red squiggly line.

This confusion is further complicated by the fact that seemingly authoritative websites often show what they claim to be strict rules as to usage. Unfortunately, many of these sources don’t always follow their own rules and recommendations.

One must keep in mind that there are two distinct forms of the word: the noun and the adjective.

In the Oxford University Press Living Dictionary there are two definitions (edited and formatted for clarity):

dependant 

(also dependent)

noun

• A person who relies on another, especially a family member, for financial support:

‘a single man with no dependants’

dependent 

adjective

1: (dependent on/upon) Contingent on or determined by:

‘the various benefits will be dependent on length of service’

    2: Requiring someone or something for financial or other support:

‘an economy heavily dependent on oil exports’

‘households with dependent children’

2.1 Unable to do without:

‘people dependent on drugs’

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Note that for the noun it says “also dependent.” I believe that this contributes to the confusion.

British English usage has generally and traditionally followed the rule of using “dependant” for the noun (such as the child who is a “dependant”) and “dependent”  for the adjective (such as the “dependent” child.

However, as Oxford notes (edited and formatted for clarity):

Until recently the only correct spelling of the noun in British English was dependant, as in a single man with no dependants. However, the variant dependent is now standard, and indeed it is now as common as dependant in the Oxford English Corpus. In US English dependent is the standard form for the noun. The adjective is spelled -ent, not -ant, as in we are dependent on his goodwill.

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As The Grammarist notes, in US English, dependent is (1) an adjective meaning contingent on another, and (2) a noun meaning a person who is financially supported by someone else. Dependant is a rare alternative spelling with no definitions of its own.

Note that the Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary only has one listing for “dependent” and lists “dependant” as an archaic alternate spelling.

Given the great number of inconsistencies in both language source materials and other published work, my recommendation is to use dependant as the noun and dependent as the adjective in British usage. In US English, dependent is acceptable for either the noun or the adjective.

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