(pronounced KA-vee-ott)

Though this word has several variations on meaning, we’re just going to relate its most common definition in day-to-day usage: When assessing, doing or figuring something out, a detail to be considered carefully because it might alter the outcome of the situation.

Example: Jan wanted her interior design firm to land the $10,000,000 campus dorm renovation project, but there was a caveat – she would be required to work with a contractor whom she had been forced to take to court years 17 years ago.