diff --git a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/apply.go b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/apply.go
index 7531f581af1..800fa736bd6 100644
--- a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/apply.go
+++ b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/apply.go
@@ -244,7 +244,11 @@ func (o *ApplyOptions) Complete(f cmdutil.Factory, cmd *cobra.Command) error {
 		return err
 	}
 
-	o.DeleteOptions = o.DeleteFlags.ToOptions(o.DynamicClient, o.IOStreams)
+	o.DeleteOptions, err = o.DeleteFlags.ToOptions(o.DynamicClient, o.IOStreams)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
 	err = o.DeleteOptions.FilenameOptions.RequireFilenameOrKustomize()
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
diff --git a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/patcher.go b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/patcher.go
index e7522273aaf..f14fdd06632 100644
--- a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/patcher.go
+++ b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/patcher.go
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/jonboulle/clockwork"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/errors"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/meta"
+	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1/unstructured"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/types"
@@ -57,10 +58,10 @@ type Patcher struct {
 	Overwrite bool
 	BackOff   clockwork.Clock
 
-	Force       bool
-	Cascade     bool
-	Timeout     time.Duration
-	GracePeriod int
+	Force             bool
+	CascadingStrategy metav1.DeletionPropagation
+	Timeout           time.Duration
+	GracePeriod       int
 
 	// If set, forces the patch against a specific resourceVersion
 	ResourceVersion *string
@@ -78,21 +79,21 @@ func newPatcher(o *ApplyOptions, info *resource.Info, helper *resource.Helper) (
 	}
 
 	return &Patcher{
-		Mapping:       info.Mapping,
-		Helper:        helper,
-		Overwrite:     o.Overwrite,
-		BackOff:       clockwork.NewRealClock(),
-		Force:         o.DeleteOptions.ForceDeletion,
-		Cascade:       o.DeleteOptions.Cascade,
-		Timeout:       o.DeleteOptions.Timeout,
-		GracePeriod:   o.DeleteOptions.GracePeriod,
-		OpenapiSchema: openapiSchema,
-		Retries:       maxPatchRetry,
+		Mapping:           info.Mapping,
+		Helper:            helper,
+		Overwrite:         o.Overwrite,
+		BackOff:           clockwork.NewRealClock(),
+		Force:             o.DeleteOptions.ForceDeletion,
+		CascadingStrategy: o.DeleteOptions.CascadingStrategy,
+		Timeout:           o.DeleteOptions.Timeout,
+		GracePeriod:       o.DeleteOptions.GracePeriod,
+		OpenapiSchema:     openapiSchema,
+		Retries:           maxPatchRetry,
 	}, nil
 }
 
 func (p *Patcher) delete(namespace, name string) error {
-	options := asDeleteOptions(p.Cascade, p.GracePeriod)
+	options := asDeleteOptions(p.CascadingStrategy, p.GracePeriod)
 	_, err := p.Helper.DeleteWithOptions(namespace, name, &options)
 	return err
 }
diff --git a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/prune.go b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/prune.go
index 6856fcea6dc..724fe9d14db 100644
--- a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/prune.go
+++ b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/apply/prune.go
@@ -41,9 +41,9 @@ type pruner struct {
 	labelSelector     string
 	fieldSelector     string
 
-	cascade        bool
-	dryRunStrategy cmdutil.DryRunStrategy
-	gracePeriod    int
+	cascadingStrategy metav1.DeletionPropagation
+	dryRunStrategy    cmdutil.DryRunStrategy
+	gracePeriod       int
 
 	toPrinter func(string) (printers.ResourcePrinter, error)
 
@@ -59,9 +59,9 @@ func newPruner(o *ApplyOptions) pruner {
 		visitedUids:       o.VisitedUids,
 		visitedNamespaces: o.VisitedNamespaces,
 
-		cascade:        o.DeleteOptions.Cascade,
-		dryRunStrategy: o.DryRunStrategy,
-		gracePeriod:    o.DeleteOptions.GracePeriod,
+		cascadingStrategy: o.DeleteOptions.CascadingStrategy,
+		dryRunStrategy:    o.DryRunStrategy,
+		gracePeriod:       o.DeleteOptions.GracePeriod,
 
 		toPrinter: o.ToPrinter,
 
@@ -139,27 +139,23 @@ func (p *pruner) prune(namespace string, mapping *meta.RESTMapping) error {
 }
 
 func (p *pruner) delete(namespace, name string, mapping *meta.RESTMapping) error {
-	return runDelete(namespace, name, mapping, p.dynamicClient, p.cascade, p.gracePeriod, p.dryRunStrategy == cmdutil.DryRunServer)
+	return runDelete(namespace, name, mapping, p.dynamicClient, p.cascadingStrategy, p.gracePeriod, p.dryRunStrategy == cmdutil.DryRunServer)
 }
 
-func runDelete(namespace, name string, mapping *meta.RESTMapping, c dynamic.Interface, cascade bool, gracePeriod int, serverDryRun bool) error {
-	options := asDeleteOptions(cascade, gracePeriod)
+func runDelete(namespace, name string, mapping *meta.RESTMapping, c dynamic.Interface, cascadingStrategy metav1.DeletionPropagation, gracePeriod int, serverDryRun bool) error {
+	options := asDeleteOptions(cascadingStrategy, gracePeriod)
 	if serverDryRun {
 		options.DryRun = []string{metav1.DryRunAll}
 	}
 	return c.Resource(mapping.Resource).Namespace(namespace).Delete(context.TODO(), name, options)
 }
 
-func asDeleteOptions(cascade bool, gracePeriod int) metav1.DeleteOptions {
+func asDeleteOptions(cascadingStrategy metav1.DeletionPropagation, gracePeriod int) metav1.DeleteOptions {
 	options := metav1.DeleteOptions{}
 	if gracePeriod >= 0 {
 		options = *metav1.NewDeleteOptions(int64(gracePeriod))
 	}
-	policy := metav1.DeletePropagationForeground
-	if !cascade {
-		policy = metav1.DeletePropagationOrphan
-	}
-	options.PropagationPolicy = &policy
+	options.PropagationPolicy = &cascadingStrategy
 	return options
 }
 
diff --git a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete.go b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete.go
index 088d85aa655..1ba0ceae848 100644
--- a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete.go
+++ b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete.go
@@ -102,8 +102,8 @@ type DeleteOptions struct {
 	FieldSelector       string
 	DeleteAll           bool
 	DeleteAllNamespaces bool
+	CascadingStrategy   metav1.DeletionPropagation
 	IgnoreNotFound      bool
-	Cascade             bool
 	DeleteNow           bool
 	ForceDeletion       bool
 	WaitForDeletion     bool
@@ -136,7 +136,8 @@ func NewCmdDelete(f cmdutil.Factory, streams genericclioptions.IOStreams) *cobra
 		Long:                  deleteLong,
 		Example:               deleteExample,
 		Run: func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) {
-			o := deleteFlags.ToOptions(nil, streams)
+			o, err := deleteFlags.ToOptions(nil, streams)
+			cmdutil.CheckErr(err)
 			cmdutil.CheckErr(o.Complete(f, args, cmd))
 			cmdutil.CheckErr(o.Validate())
 			cmdutil.CheckErr(o.RunDelete(f))
@@ -301,11 +302,7 @@ func (o *DeleteOptions) DeleteResult(r *resource.Result) error {
 		if o.GracePeriod >= 0 {
 			options = metav1.NewDeleteOptions(int64(o.GracePeriod))
 		}
-		policy := metav1.DeletePropagationBackground
-		if !o.Cascade {
-			policy = metav1.DeletePropagationOrphan
-		}
-		options.PropagationPolicy = &policy
+		options.PropagationPolicy = &o.CascadingStrategy
 
 		if warnClusterScope && info.Mapping.Scope.Name() == meta.RESTScopeNameRoot {
 			fmt.Fprintf(o.ErrOut, "warning: deleting cluster-scoped resources, not scoped to the provided namespace\n")
diff --git a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete_flags.go b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete_flags.go
index 20447ff0bf9..863ca1cbc1e 100644
--- a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete_flags.go
+++ b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete_flags.go
@@ -17,12 +17,16 @@ limitations under the License.
 package delete
 
 import (
+	"fmt"
+	"strconv"
 	"time"
 
 	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
 
+	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
 	"k8s.io/cli-runtime/pkg/genericclioptions"
 	"k8s.io/client-go/dynamic"
+	"k8s.io/klog/v2"
 )
 
 // DeleteFlags composes common printer flag structs
@@ -32,20 +36,20 @@ type DeleteFlags struct {
 	LabelSelector *string
 	FieldSelector *string
 
-	All            *bool
-	AllNamespaces  *bool
-	Cascade        *bool
-	Force          *bool
-	GracePeriod    *int
-	IgnoreNotFound *bool
-	Now            *bool
-	Timeout        *time.Duration
-	Wait           *bool
-	Output         *string
-	Raw            *string
+	All               *bool
+	AllNamespaces     *bool
+	CascadingStrategy *string
+	Force             *bool
+	GracePeriod       *int
+	IgnoreNotFound    *bool
+	Now               *bool
+	Timeout           *time.Duration
+	Wait              *bool
+	Output            *string
+	Raw               *string
 }
 
-func (f *DeleteFlags) ToOptions(dynamicClient dynamic.Interface, streams genericclioptions.IOStreams) *DeleteOptions {
+func (f *DeleteFlags) ToOptions(dynamicClient dynamic.Interface, streams genericclioptions.IOStreams) (*DeleteOptions, error) {
 	options := &DeleteOptions{
 		DynamicClient: dynamicClient,
 		IOStreams:     streams,
@@ -73,8 +77,12 @@ func (f *DeleteFlags) ToOptions(dynamicClient dynamic.Interface, streams generic
 	if f.AllNamespaces != nil {
 		options.DeleteAllNamespaces = *f.AllNamespaces
 	}
-	if f.Cascade != nil {
-		options.Cascade = *f.Cascade
+	if f.CascadingStrategy != nil {
+		var err error
+		options.CascadingStrategy, err = getCascadingStrategy(*f.CascadingStrategy)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
 	}
 	if f.Force != nil {
 		options.ForceDeletion = *f.Force
@@ -98,7 +106,7 @@ func (f *DeleteFlags) ToOptions(dynamicClient dynamic.Interface, streams generic
 		options.Raw = *f.Raw
 	}
 
-	return options
+	return options, nil
 }
 
 func (f *DeleteFlags) AddFlags(cmd *cobra.Command) {
@@ -118,8 +126,13 @@ func (f *DeleteFlags) AddFlags(cmd *cobra.Command) {
 	if f.Force != nil {
 		cmd.Flags().BoolVar(f.Force, "force", *f.Force, "If true, immediately remove resources from API and bypass graceful deletion. Note that immediate deletion of some resources may result in inconsistency or data loss and requires confirmation.")
 	}
-	if f.Cascade != nil {
-		cmd.Flags().BoolVar(f.Cascade, "cascade", *f.Cascade, "If true, run background cascade deletion of the resources managed by this resource (e.g. Pods created by a ReplicationController).  Default true.")
+	if f.CascadingStrategy != nil {
+		cmd.Flags().StringVar(
+			f.CascadingStrategy,
+			"cascade",
+			*f.CascadingStrategy,
+			`Must be "background", "orphan", or "foreground". Selects the deletion cascading strategy for the dependents (e.g. Pods created by a ReplicationController). Defaults to background.`)
+		cmd.Flags().Lookup("cascade").NoOptDefVal = "background"
 	}
 	if f.Now != nil {
 		cmd.Flags().BoolVar(f.Now, "now", *f.Now, "If true, resources are signaled for immediate shutdown (same as --grace-period=1).")
@@ -146,7 +159,7 @@ func (f *DeleteFlags) AddFlags(cmd *cobra.Command) {
 
 // NewDeleteCommandFlags provides default flags and values for use with the "delete" command
 func NewDeleteCommandFlags(usage string) *DeleteFlags {
-	cascade := true
+	cascadingStrategy := "background"
 	gracePeriod := -1
 
 	// setup command defaults
@@ -172,8 +185,8 @@ func NewDeleteCommandFlags(usage string) *DeleteFlags {
 		LabelSelector: &labelSelector,
 		FieldSelector: &fieldSelector,
 
-		Cascade:     &cascade,
-		GracePeriod: &gracePeriod,
+		CascadingStrategy: &cascadingStrategy,
+		GracePeriod:       &gracePeriod,
 
 		All:            &all,
 		AllNamespaces:  &allNamespaces,
@@ -189,7 +202,7 @@ func NewDeleteCommandFlags(usage string) *DeleteFlags {
 
 // NewDeleteFlags provides default flags and values for use in commands outside of "delete"
 func NewDeleteFlags(usage string) *DeleteFlags {
-	cascade := true
+	cascadingStrategy := "background"
 	gracePeriod := -1
 
 	force := false
@@ -203,8 +216,8 @@ func NewDeleteFlags(usage string) *DeleteFlags {
 	return &DeleteFlags{
 		FileNameFlags: &genericclioptions.FileNameFlags{Usage: usage, Filenames: &filenames, Kustomize: &kustomize, Recursive: &recursive},
 
-		Cascade:     &cascade,
-		GracePeriod: &gracePeriod,
+		CascadingStrategy: &cascadingStrategy,
+		GracePeriod:       &gracePeriod,
 
 		// add non-defaults
 		Force:   &force,
@@ -212,3 +225,27 @@ func NewDeleteFlags(usage string) *DeleteFlags {
 		Wait:    &wait,
 	}
 }
+
+func getCascadingStrategy(cascadingFlag string) (metav1.DeletionPropagation, error) {
+	b, err := strconv.ParseBool(cascadingFlag)
+	// The flag is not a boolean
+	if err != nil {
+		switch cascadingFlag {
+		case "orphan":
+			return metav1.DeletePropagationOrphan, nil
+		case "foreground":
+			return metav1.DeletePropagationForeground, nil
+		case "background":
+			return metav1.DeletePropagationBackground, nil
+		default:
+			return metav1.DeletePropagationBackground, fmt.Errorf(`Invalid cascade value (%v). Must be "background", "foreground", or "orphan".`, cascadingFlag)
+		}
+	}
+	// The flag was a boolean
+	if b {
+		klog.Warningf(`--cascade=%v is deprecated (boolean value) and can be replaced with --cascade=%s.`, cascadingFlag, "background")
+		return metav1.DeletePropagationBackground, nil
+	}
+	klog.Warningf(`--cascade=%v is deprecated (boolean value) and can be replaced with --cascade=%s.`, cascadingFlag, "orphan")
+	return metav1.DeletePropagationOrphan, nil
+}
diff --git a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete_test.go b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete_test.go
index f4faf6289f5..f5e36e3bbee 100644
--- a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete_test.go
+++ b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/delete/delete_test.go
@@ -112,8 +112,8 @@ func hasExpectedPropagationPolicy(body io.ReadCloser, policy *metav1.DeletionPro
 	return *policy == *parsedBody.PropagationPolicy
 }
 
-// Tests that DeleteOptions.OrphanDependents is appropriately set while deleting objects.
-func TestOrphanDependentsInDeleteObject(t *testing.T) {
+// TestCascadingStrategy tests that DeleteOptions.DeletionPropagation is appropriately set while deleting objects.
+func TestCascadingStrategy(t *testing.T) {
 	cmdtesting.InitTestErrorHandler(t)
 	_, _, rc := cmdtesting.TestData()
 
@@ -137,7 +137,7 @@ func TestOrphanDependentsInDeleteObject(t *testing.T) {
 		}),
 	}
 
-	// DeleteOptions.PropagationPolicy should be Background, when cascade is true (default).
+	// DeleteOptions.PropagationPolicy should be Background, when cascading strategy is empty (default).
 	backgroundPolicy := metav1.DeletePropagationBackground
 	policy = &backgroundPolicy
 	streams, _, buf, _ := genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreams()
@@ -149,13 +149,26 @@ func TestOrphanDependentsInDeleteObject(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Errorf("unexpected output: %s", buf.String())
 	}
 
-	// Test that delete options should be set to orphan when cascade is false.
+	// DeleteOptions.PropagationPolicy should be Foreground, when cascading strategy is foreground.
+	foregroundPolicy := metav1.DeletePropagationForeground
+	policy = &foregroundPolicy
+	streams, _, buf, _ = genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreams()
+	cmd = NewCmdDelete(tf, streams)
+	cmd.Flags().Set("namespace", "test")
+	cmd.Flags().Set("cascade", "foreground")
+	cmd.Flags().Set("output", "name")
+	cmd.Run(cmd, []string{"secrets/mysecret"})
+	if buf.String() != "secret/mysecret\n" {
+		t.Errorf("unexpected output: %s", buf.String())
+	}
+
+	// Test that delete options should be set to orphan when cascading strategy is orphan.
 	orphanPolicy := metav1.DeletePropagationOrphan
 	policy = &orphanPolicy
 	streams, _, buf, _ = genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreams()
 	cmd = NewCmdDelete(tf, streams)
 	cmd.Flags().Set("namespace", "test")
-	cmd.Flags().Set("cascade", "false")
+	cmd.Flags().Set("cascade", "orphan")
 	cmd.Flags().Set("output", "name")
 	cmd.Run(cmd, []string{"secrets/mysecret"})
 	if buf.String() != "secret/mysecret\n" {
@@ -427,10 +440,10 @@ func TestDeleteObjectNotFound(t *testing.T) {
 		FilenameOptions: resource.FilenameOptions{
 			Filenames: []string{"../../../testdata/redis-master-controller.yaml"},
 		},
-		GracePeriod: -1,
-		Cascade:     false,
-		Output:      "name",
-		IOStreams:   genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreamsDiscard(),
+		GracePeriod:       -1,
+		CascadingStrategy: metav1.DeletePropagationOrphan,
+		Output:            "name",
+		IOStreams:         genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreamsDiscard(),
 	}
 	err := options.Complete(tf, []string{}, fakecmd())
 	if err != nil {
@@ -504,13 +517,13 @@ func TestDeleteAllNotFound(t *testing.T) {
 
 	// Make sure we can explicitly choose to fail on NotFound errors, even with --all
 	options := &DeleteOptions{
-		FilenameOptions: resource.FilenameOptions{},
-		GracePeriod:     -1,
-		Cascade:         false,
-		DeleteAll:       true,
-		IgnoreNotFound:  false,
-		Output:          "name",
-		IOStreams:       genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreamsDiscard(),
+		FilenameOptions:   resource.FilenameOptions{},
+		GracePeriod:       -1,
+		CascadingStrategy: metav1.DeletePropagationOrphan,
+		DeleteAll:         true,
+		IgnoreNotFound:    false,
+		Output:            "name",
+		IOStreams:         genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreamsDiscard(),
 	}
 	err := options.Complete(tf, []string{"services"}, fakecmd())
 	if err != nil {
@@ -630,10 +643,10 @@ func TestDeleteMultipleObjectContinueOnMissing(t *testing.T) {
 		FilenameOptions: resource.FilenameOptions{
 			Filenames: []string{"../../../testdata/redis-master-controller.yaml", "../../../testdata/frontend-service.yaml"},
 		},
-		GracePeriod: -1,
-		Cascade:     false,
-		Output:      "name",
-		IOStreams:   streams,
+		GracePeriod:       -1,
+		CascadingStrategy: metav1.DeletePropagationOrphan,
+		Output:            "name",
+		IOStreams:         streams,
 	}
 	err := options.Complete(tf, []string{}, fakecmd())
 	if err != nil {
@@ -801,11 +814,11 @@ func TestResourceErrors(t *testing.T) {
 
 			streams, _, buf, _ := genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreams()
 			options := &DeleteOptions{
-				FilenameOptions: resource.FilenameOptions{},
-				GracePeriod:     -1,
-				Cascade:         false,
-				Output:          "name",
-				IOStreams:       streams,
+				FilenameOptions:   resource.FilenameOptions{},
+				GracePeriod:       -1,
+				CascadingStrategy: metav1.DeletePropagationOrphan,
+				Output:            "name",
+				IOStreams:         streams,
 			}
 			err := options.Complete(tf, testCase.args, fakecmd())
 			if !testCase.errFn(err) {
diff --git a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/replace/replace.go b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/replace/replace.go
index 03b809c8d64..ff4a9be31ed 100644
--- a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/replace/replace.go
+++ b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/replace/replace.go
@@ -171,7 +171,10 @@ func (o *ReplaceOptions) Complete(f cmdutil.Factory, cmd *cobra.Command, args []
 		return printer.PrintObj(obj, o.Out)
 	}
 
-	deleteOpts := o.DeleteFlags.ToOptions(dynamicClient, o.IOStreams)
+	deleteOpts, err := o.DeleteFlags.ToOptions(dynamicClient, o.IOStreams)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
 
 	//Replace will create a resource if it doesn't exist already, so ignore not found error
 	deleteOpts.IgnoreNotFound = true
diff --git a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/run/run.go b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/run/run.go
index 524f0093c4a..6910caf6b85 100644
--- a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/run/run.go
+++ b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/run/run.go
@@ -245,7 +245,11 @@ func (o *RunOptions) Complete(f cmdutil.Factory, cmd *cobra.Command) error {
 		return printer.PrintObj(obj, o.Out)
 	}
 
-	deleteOpts := o.DeleteFlags.ToOptions(dynamicClient, o.IOStreams)
+	deleteOpts, err := o.DeleteFlags.ToOptions(dynamicClient, o.IOStreams)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
 	deleteOpts.IgnoreNotFound = true
 	deleteOpts.WaitForDeletion = false
 	deleteOpts.GracePeriod = -1
diff --git a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/run/run_test.go b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/run/run_test.go
index 0fb7686fd1a..d2a264fb6c5 100644
--- a/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/run/run_test.go
+++ b/staging/src/k8s.io/kubectl/pkg/cmd/run/run_test.go
@@ -199,9 +199,14 @@ func TestRunArgsFollowDashRules(t *testing.T) {
 			}
 
 			deleteFlags := delete.NewDeleteFlags("to use to replace the resource.")
+			deleteOptions, err := deleteFlags.ToOptions(nil, genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreamsDiscard())
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Errorf("unexpected error: %v", err)
+				return
+			}
 			opts := &RunOptions{
 				PrintFlags:    printFlags,
-				DeleteOptions: deleteFlags.ToOptions(nil, genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreamsDiscard()),
+				DeleteOptions: deleteOptions,
 
 				IOStreams: genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreamsDiscard(),
 
@@ -371,9 +376,14 @@ func TestGenerateService(t *testing.T) {
 
 			ioStreams, _, buff, _ := genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreams()
 			deleteFlags := delete.NewDeleteFlags("to use to replace the resource.")
+			deleteOptions, err := deleteFlags.ToOptions(nil, genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreamsDiscard())
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Errorf("unexpected error: %v", err)
+				return
+			}
 			opts := &RunOptions{
 				PrintFlags:    printFlags,
-				DeleteOptions: deleteFlags.ToOptions(nil, genericclioptions.NewTestIOStreamsDiscard()),
+				DeleteOptions: deleteOptions,
 
 				IOStreams: ioStreams,
 
diff --git a/test/cmd/apps.sh b/test/cmd/apps.sh
index c119a9b8b35..dca1b696b9a 100755
--- a/test/cmd/apps.sh
+++ b/test/cmd/apps.sh
@@ -137,7 +137,7 @@ run_kubectl_apply_deployments_tests() {
 
   # cleanup
   # need to explicitly remove replicasets and pods because we changed the deployment selector and orphaned things
-  kubectl delete deployments,rs,pods --all --cascade=false --grace-period=0
+  kubectl delete deployments,rs,pods --all --cascade=orphan --grace-period=0
   # Post-Condition: no Deployments, ReplicaSets, Pods exist
   kube::test::wait_object_assert deployments "{{range.items}}{{${id_field:?}}}:{{end}}" ''
   kube::test::wait_object_assert replicasets "{{range.items}}{{${id_field:?}}}:{{end}}" ''
@@ -246,10 +246,11 @@ run_deployment_tests() {
   # Wait for rs to come up.
   kube::test::wait_object_assert rs "{{range.items}}{{${rs_replicas_field:?}}}{{end}}" '3'
   # Deleting the deployment should delete the rs.
-  kubectl delete deployment nginx-deployment "${kube_flags[@]:?}"
+  # using empty value in cascade flag to make sure the backward compatibility.
+  kubectl delete deployment nginx-deployment "${kube_flags[@]:?}" --cascade
   kube::test::wait_object_assert rs "{{range.items}}{{${id_field:?}}}:{{end}}" ''
 
-  ## Test that rs is not deleted when deployment is deleted with cascade set to false.
+  ## Test that rs is not deleted when deployment is deleted with cascading strategy set to orphan.
   # Pre-condition: no deployment and rs exist
   kube::test::get_object_assert deployment "{{range.items}}{{${id_field:?}}}:{{end}}" ''
   kube::test::get_object_assert rs "{{range.items}}{{${id_field:?}}}:{{end}}" ''
@@ -257,8 +258,8 @@ run_deployment_tests() {
   kubectl create deployment nginx-deployment --image=k8s.gcr.io/nginx:test-cmd
   # Wait for rs to come up.
   kube::test::wait_object_assert rs "{{range.items}}{{${rs_replicas_field:?}}}{{end}}" '1'
-  # Delete the deployment with cascade set to false.
-  kubectl delete deployment nginx-deployment "${kube_flags[@]:?}" --cascade=false
+  # Delete the deployment with cascading strategy set to orphan.
+  kubectl delete deployment nginx-deployment "${kube_flags[@]:?}" --cascade=orphan
   # Wait for the deployment to be deleted and then verify that rs is not
   # deleted.
   kube::test::wait_object_assert deployment "{{range.items}}{{${id_field:?}}}:{{end}}" ''
@@ -545,7 +546,7 @@ run_rs_tests() {
   # Post-condition: no pods from frontend replica set
   kube::test::wait_object_assert 'pods -l "tier=frontend"' "{{range.items}}{{${id_field:?}}}:{{end}}" ''
 
-  ### Create and then delete a replica set with cascade=false, make sure it doesn't delete pods.
+  ### Create and then delete a replica set with cascading strategy set to orphan, make sure it doesn't delete pods.
   # Pre-condition: no replica set exists
   kube::test::get_object_assert rs "{{range.items}}{{${id_field:?}}}:{{end}}" ''
   # Command
@@ -553,7 +554,7 @@ run_rs_tests() {
   # wait for all 3 pods to be set up
   kube::test::wait_object_assert 'pods -l "tier=frontend"' "{{range.items}}{{${pod_container_name_field:?}}}:{{end}}" 'php-redis:php-redis:php-redis:'
   kube::log::status "Deleting rs"
-  kubectl delete rs frontend "${kube_flags[@]:?}" --cascade=false
+  kubectl delete rs frontend "${kube_flags[@]:?}" --cascade=orphan
   # Wait for the rs to be deleted.
   kube::test::wait_object_assert rs "{{range.items}}{{${id_field:?}}}:{{end}}" ''
   # Post-condition: All 3 pods still remain from frontend replica set
diff --git a/test/cmd/crd.sh b/test/cmd/crd.sh
index 0549337cdd8..52e72293e3b 100755
--- a/test/cmd/crd.sh
+++ b/test/cmd/crd.sh
@@ -194,8 +194,8 @@ run_non_native_resource_tests() {
   output_message=$(kubectl "${kube_flags[@]}" get kind.mygroup.example.com/myobj -o name)
   kube::test::if_has_string "${output_message}" 'kind.mygroup.example.com/myobj'
 
-  # Delete the resource with cascade.
-  kubectl "${kube_flags[@]}" delete resources myobj --cascade=true
+  # Delete the resource with cascading strategy background.
+  kubectl "${kube_flags[@]}" delete resources myobj --cascade=background
 
   # Make sure it's gone
   kube::test::wait_object_assert resources "{{range.items}}{{$id_field}}:{{end}}" ''
@@ -275,8 +275,8 @@ run_non_native_resource_tests() {
   kubectl "${kube_flags[@]}" describe foos | grep listlabel=true
   kubectl "${kube_flags[@]}" describe foos | grep itemlabel=true
 
-  # Delete the resource with cascade.
-  kubectl "${kube_flags[@]}" delete foos test --cascade=true
+  # Delete the resource with cascading strategy background.
+  kubectl "${kube_flags[@]}" delete foos test --cascade=background
 
   # Make sure it's gone
   kube::test::wait_object_assert foos "{{range.items}}{{$id_field}}:{{end}}" ''
@@ -313,8 +313,8 @@ run_non_native_resource_tests() {
   kill -9 "${patch_pid}"
   kube::test::if_has_string "${watch_output}" 'bar.company.com/test'
 
-  # Delete the resource without cascade.
-  kubectl "${kube_flags[@]}" delete bars test --cascade=false
+  # Delete the resource with cascading strategy orphan.
+  kubectl "${kube_flags[@]}" delete bars test --cascade=orphan
 
   # Make sure it's gone
   kube::test::wait_object_assert bars "{{range.items}}{{$id_field}}:{{end}}" ''
diff --git a/test/cmd/generic-resources.sh b/test/cmd/generic-resources.sh
index c3bb11fa5e0..17f111580b2 100755
--- a/test/cmd/generic-resources.sh
+++ b/test/cmd/generic-resources.sh
@@ -90,7 +90,7 @@ run_multi_resources_tests() {
     fi
     kubectl describe -f "${file}" "${kube_flags[@]}"
     # Command
-    kubectl replace -f "${replace_file}" --force --cascade "${kube_flags[@]}"
+    kubectl replace -f "${replace_file}" --force --cascade=background "${kube_flags[@]}"
     # Post-condition: mock service (and mock2) and mock rc (and mock2) are replaced
     if [ "$has_svc" = true ]; then
       kube::test::get_object_assert 'services mock' "{{${labels_field:?}.status}}" 'replaced'