capital

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See also: capitâl

English[edit]

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Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle English capital, a borrowing from Latin capitālis ‎(“of the head”), in sense “head of cattle”, from caput ‎(“head”) (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

Compare chattel and kith and kine ‎(“all one’s possessions”), which also use “cow” to mean “property”.

This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

capital ‎(countable and uncountable, plural capitals)

  1. (uncountable, economics) Already-produced durable goods available for use as a factor of production, such as steam shovels (equipment) and office buildings (structures).
  2. (uncountable, business, finance) Money and wealth. The means to acquire goods and services, especially in a non-barter system.
    He does not have enough capital to start a business.‎
  3. (countable) A city designated as a legislative seat by the government or some other authority, often the city in which the government is located; otherwise the most important city within a country or a subdivision of it.
    • 2013 June 8, “The new masters and commanders”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8839, page 52:
      From the ground, Colombo’s port does not look like much. […]   But viewed from high up in one of the growing number of skyscrapers in Sri Lanka’s capital, it is clear that something extraordinary is happening: China is creating a shipping hub just 200 miles from India’s southern tip.
    Washington D.C. is the capital of the United States of America.‎
    The Welsh government claims that Cardiff is Europe’s youngest capital.‎
  4. (countable) The most important city in the field specified.
    • 2010 September, Charlie Brennan, "Active Athletes", St. Louis magazine, ISSN 1090-5723, volume 16, issue 9, page 83:
      Hollywood is the film capital, New York the theater capital, Las Vegas the gambling capital.
  5. (countable) An uppercase letter.
  6. (countable, architecture) The uppermost part of a column.
  7. (uncountable) Knowledge; awareness; proficiency.
    Interpreters need a good amount of cultural capital in order to function efficiently in the profession.‎

Usage notes[edit]

The homophone capitol refers only to a building, usually one that houses the legislative branch of a government, and often one located in a capital city.

Synonyms[edit]

Antonyms[edit]

Translations[edit]

capital city — see capital city
capital letter — see capital letter
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked

Adjective[edit]

capital ‎(not comparable)

  1. Of prime importance.
    • (Can we date this quote?) Atterbury
      a capital article in religion
    • 1852, Isaac Taylor, Saturday Evening
      whatever is capital and essential in Christianity
  2. Chief, in a political sense, as being the seat of the general government of a state or nation.
    London and Paris are capital cities.
  3. (comparable, Britain, dated) Excellent.
    That is a capital idea!
  4. Involving punishment by death.
    • (Can we date this quote?) Jonathan Swift
      many crimes that are capital among us
    • (Can we date this quote?) Milton
      to put to death a capital offender
    • 2002, Colin Jones, The Great Nation, Penguin 2003, p. 517:
      Some 1,600 priests were deported, for example, while the total number of capital victims of the military commissions down to 1799 was only around 150.
  5. Uppercase.
    One begins a sentence with a capital letter.
  6. Of or relating to the head.
    • (Can we date this quote?) Milton
      Needs must the Serpent now his capital bruise / Expect with mortal pain.

Antonyms[edit]

Translations[edit]

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked

Derived terms[edit]

Terms derived from the noun or adjective capital

Related terms[edit]

Terms etymologically related to capital

References[edit]

  • “capital” in Douglas Harper, Online Etymology Dictionary (2001).

Asturian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowing from Latin capitālis.

Adjective[edit]

capital (epicene, plural capitales)

  1. capital

Noun[edit]

capital f ‎(plural capitales)

  1. capital city (city designated as seat of government)

capital m ‎(plural capitales)

  1. capital (money)

Catalan[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowing from Latin capitālis.

Noun[edit]

capital f ‎(plural capitals)

  1. capital (city)

Noun[edit]

capital m ‎(plural capitals)

  1. capital (finance)

French[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowing from Latin capitālis. Doublet of cheptel.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

capital m ‎(plural capitaux)

  1. capital (money and wealth)

Adjective[edit]

capital m ‎(feminine singular capitale, masculine plural capitaux, feminine plural capitales)

  1. capital (important)
    La peine capitale est abolie en France depuis les années 1980.

Related terms[edit]

Anagrams[edit]

External links[edit]

Portuguese[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowing from Latin capitālis.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

capital f (plural capitais)

  1. (geopolitics) capital; capital city (place where the seat of a government is located)
  2. (figuratively) capital (the most important place associated with something)

Noun[edit]

capital m (plural capitais)

  1. (finances) capital (money that can be used to acquire goods and services)
  2. (figuratively) anything of prime importance

Derived terms[edit]

Adjective[edit]

capital m, f ‎(plural capitais, comparable)

  1. capital (of prime importance)
  2. (law) capital (involving punishment by death)
  3. (rare, anatomy) capital (relating to the head)

Related terms[edit]

Romanian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowing from French capital, Latin capitālis.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

capital n ‎(plural capitaluri)

  1. (economics, business) capital

Adjective[edit]

capital

  1. capital, important

Romansch[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin capitālis, from caput ‎(“head”).

Noun[edit]

capital m (plural capitals)

  1. (Sursilvan, Sutsilvan, Surmiran) capital

Related terms[edit]

Spanish[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowing from Latin capitālis.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ka.piˈtal/
  • Audio (Latin America)
    		(file)

Adjective[edit]

capital m, f ‎(plural capitales)

  1. capital (important)
    Es asunto de capital importancia = "(This) is a very important matter"
    Lo condenaron a la pena capital = "He was sentenced to death penalty" (rare, "pena de muerte" is commonly used)

Noun[edit]

capital m ‎(plural capitales)

  1. capital (finance)

capital f ‎(plural capitales)

  1. capital (city)

See also[edit]

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