capricious

English

Etymology

From French capricieux, from Italian capriccioso.

Adjective

capricious (comparative more capricious, superlative most capricious)

1. Impulsive and unpredictable; determined by chance, impulse, or whim

   I almost died in a capricious winter storm.

   Stringent rulers are unlikely to act capriciously.

   The Mayor claimed that the action was reasonable, but in reality the action was arbitrary and capricious in nature.

   • 1877, Henry James, The American:

     "Capricious?" And at this monsieur began to laugh. "Oh no, I'm not capricious. I am very faithful. I am very constant. Comprenez?"

Usage notes

• Capricious can describe both a person and the decisions they make.

Synonyms

• whimsical
• arbitrary

Antonyms

• conscientious
• rigorous

Derived terms

• capriciously

Related terms

• caprice

Translations

Impulsive and unpredictable; determined by chance, impulse, or whim

• Breton: froudennek (br)
• Bulgarian: капризен (bg) (kaprizen), непостоянен (bg) (nepostojanen), непредвидим (bg) (nepredvidim)
• Danish: uberegnelig (da), uforudsigbar (da)/uforutsigbar (da)
• Dutch: grillig (nl)
• Esperanto: kaprica (eo)
• German: kapriziös (de), launenhaft (de), unberechenbar (de)
• Hungarian: szeszélyes (hu)
• Icelandic: duttlungasamur (is) m, mislyndur (is) m, kenjóttur (is) m, dyntóttur (is) m, duttlungafullur (is) m
• Indonesian: sulit diduga, licin, licik

• Lithuanian: įnoringas (lt)
• Norwegian: uberegnelig (no), uforutsigbar (no)
• Polish: nagły (pl) m, kapryśny (pl)
• Romanian: capricios (ro)
• Russian: капризный (ru) (kaprizniy) m
• Spanish: caprichoso (es), antojadizo (es)
• Swedish: oberäknelig (sv), oförutsägbar (sv)
• Thai: ตามอำเภอใจ (th) (tāmxảp̣hexcı)
• Turkish: kaprisli (tr)