What does selectee mean?
A selectee is a person who has been chosen for a particular position, program, appointment, or course of training. The word emphasizes the status of having been selected rather than merely being a candidate for selection. It is particularly associated with military institutions, where selectees may be chosen to attend training, an academy, or another specialized program. In academic and professional settings, “selectee” can likewise refer to someone admitted to a selective course, scholarship, or traineeship. The suffix -ee is characteristic of English nouns naming the person who performs a role or undergoes a process, as in employee and appointee. Compared with broader terms such as candidate, selectee normally implies that selection has already occurred, although the exact institutional procedure may still be continuing.
nounA person who has been selected or chosen for a particular role, course, program, or appointment. The term is especially associated with military training and selection programs.
- A person who has been selected or chosen for a role, appointment, program, or course.
- A person selected for military training or service.
"Each selectee received a letter explaining the next stage of the selection process."
"The program welcomes each selectee with an orientation week."
"As a selectee in the army, she completed several months of intensive training."
The regular plural adds -s.
"The successful selectees began their training the following Monday."
The suffix -ee in selectee identifies a person, turning the act of selecting into the person who is chosen.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does selectee come from?
Selectee was formed in the early 19th century from select and the suffix -ee, meaning a person selected or appointed. The base word select comes from Latin selectus, the past participle of eligere, meaning “to choose.” Words such as elective, eligible, and selection belong to the same Latin root.
How selectee is actually used
The word is formal and occupational or institutional. It is especially common in American English in military, academic, and government selection contexts.