NEET

American

[neet] / nit /

noun

plural

NEETs

Not in Education, Employment, or Training: a young person who is not working, studying, or receiving vocational training.

NEET British

/ niːt, niːt /

acronym

(in Britain) not in employment, education, or training: a person so described

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of NEET

First recorded in 1995–2000

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Official estimates are that 957,000 people aged 16 to 24 were Neet in October to December 2025, or 12.8% of that age group.

From BBC

Someone in formal education, such as school or university, doing an apprenticeship or vocational course, is not considered to be Neet.

From BBC

Karl Maughan Gilbert, a senior youth worker, says the term Neet is a "horrible" one with "really negative connotations".

From BBC

That aims to create thousands of apprenticeships and guarantee paid work for people aged 18 to 21 if they have been out of education, employment or training, known as Neet, for 18 months.

From BBC

They are not considered to be Neet if they are in formal education, such as school or university, doing an apprenticeship or vocational course, or in full-time or part-time work.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023