Definitions for capital
ˈkæp ɪ tlcap·i·tal

Princeton's WordNet(4.38 / 8 votes)Rate this definition:

1. capital, working capitalnoun

   assets available for use in the production of further assets

2. capitalnoun

   wealth in the form of money or property owned by a person or business and human resources of economic value

3. capitalnoun

   a seat of government

4. capital, capital letter, uppercase, upper-case letter, majusculenoun

   one of the large alphabetic characters used as the first letter in writing or printing proper names and sometimes for emphasis

   "printers once kept the type for capitals and for small letters in separate cases; capitals were kept in the upper half of the type case and so became known as upper-case letters"

5. capitalnoun

   a center that is associated more than any other with some activity or product

   "the crime capital of Italy"; "the drug capital of Columbia"

6. Capital, Washingtonnoun

   the federal government of the United States

7. Das Kapital, Capitalnoun

   a book written by Karl Marx (1867) describing his economic theories

8. capital, chapiter, capadjective

   the upper part of a column that supports the entablature

9. capitaladjective

   first-rate

   "a capital fellow"; "a capital idea"

10. capitaladjective

    of primary importance

    "our capital concern was to avoid defeat"

11. capital, great, majusculeadjective

    uppercase

    "capital A"; "great A"; "many medieval manuscripts are in majuscule script"

Wiktionary(5.00 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. capitalnoun

   Already-produced durable goods available for use as a factor of production, such as steam shovels (equipment) and office buildings (structures).

   He does not have enough capital to start a business.

   Etymology: From capitalis, in sense “head of cattle”, from caput (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

2. capitalnoun

   Money and wealth. The means to acquire goods and services, especially in a non-barter system.

   Etymology: From capitalis, in sense “head of cattle”, from caput (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

3. capitalnoun

   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.

   Etymology: From capitalis, in sense “head of cattle”, from caput (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

4. capitalnoun

   The most important city in the field specified.

   Etymology: From capitalis, in sense “head of cattle”, from caput (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

5. capitalnoun

   An uppercase letter.

   Etymology: From capitalis, in sense “head of cattle”, from caput (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

6. capitalnoun

   The uppermost part of a column.

   Etymology: From capitalis, in sense “head of cattle”, from caput (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

7. capitalnoun

   Knowledge; awareness; proficiency.

   Interpreters need a good amount of cultural capital in order to function efficiently in the profession.

   Etymology: From capitalis, in sense “head of cattle”, from caput (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

8. capitaladjective

   of prime importance

   Etymology: From capitalis, in sense “head of cattle”, from caput (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

9. capitaladjective

   excellent

   That is a capital idea!

   Etymology: From capitalis, in sense “head of cattle”, from caput (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

10. capitaladjective

    Involving punishment by death.

    Etymology: From capitalis, in sense “head of cattle”, from caput (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

11. capitaladjective

    uppercase

    One begins a sentence with a capital letter.

    Etymology: From capitalis, in sense “head of cattle”, from caput (English cap). Use in trade and finance originated in Medieval economies when a common but expensive transaction involved trading heads of cattle.

Webster Dictionary(3.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Capitalnoun

   of or pertaining to the head

   Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

2. Capitalnoun

   having reference to, or involving, the forfeiture of the head or life; affecting life; punishable with death; as, capital trials; capital punishment

   Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

3. Capitalnoun

   first in importance; chief; principal

   Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

4. Capitalnoun

   chief, in a political sense, as being the seat of the general government of a state or nation; as, Washington and Paris are capital cities

   Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

5. Capitalnoun

   of first rate quality; excellent; as, a capital speech or song

   Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

6. Capitalnoun

   the head or uppermost member of a column, pilaster, etc. It consists generally of three parts, abacus, bell (or vase), and necking. See these terms, and Column

   Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

7. Capitalnoun

   the seat of government; the chief city or town in a country; a metropolis

   Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

8. Capitalnoun

   money, property, or stock employed in trade, manufactures, etc.; the sum invested or lent, as distinguished from the income or interest. See Capital stock, under Capital, a

   Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

9. Capitaladjective

   that portion of the produce of industry, which may be directly employed either to support human beings or to assist in production

   Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

10. Capitaladjective

    anything which can be used to increase one's power or influence

    Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

11. Capitaladjective

    an imaginary line dividing a bastion, ravelin, or other work, into two equal parts

    Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

12. Capitaladjective

    a chapter, or section, of a book

    Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

13. Capitaladjective

    see Capital letter, under Capital, a

    Etymology: [Cf. L. capitellum and capitulum, a small head, the head, top, or capital of a column, dim. of caput head; F. chapiteau, OF. capitel. See chief, and cf. cattle, chattel, chapiter, chapter.]

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Capital

   kap′it-al, adj. relating to the head: involving the loss of the head; chief: principal: excellent.—n. the head or top part of a column or pillar: the chief or most important thing: the chief city of a country: a large letter, such as used on title-pages, &c.: the stock or money for carrying on any business.—n. Capitalisā′tion, the act of converting into capital: printing with capital letters.—v.t. Cap′italīse, to convert into capital or money.—ns. Cap′italism, condition of possessing capital: the economic system which generates capitalists; Cap′italist, one who has capital or money.—adv. Cap′itally, chiefly: principally: excellently: by capital punishment.—adj. Cap′itate (bot.), growing in or shaped like a head.—ns. Capitā′tion, a numbering of every head or individual: a tax on every head; Capite (kap′it-i), an ancient English tenure (Shak.).—Circulating or Floating capital consists of the wages paid to the workmen, and of the raw material used up in the processes of industry, &c.; Fixed capital consists of buildings, machines, tools, &c.—Hold lands in capite, to hold them directly from the sovereign.—Make capital out of, to turn to advantage. [O. Fr. capitel—L. capitalis—caput, the head.]

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. capital

   In technical fortification, is an imaginary line bisecting the salient angle of a work.

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. capital

   A form of money, property or assets.

   The capital costs were easily defined and managed.

   Submitted by MaryC on March 14, 2020  

Suggested Resources(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. capital

   Song lyrics by capital -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by capital on the Lyrics.com website.

Matched Categories

1. • Assets
   • Book
   • Center
   • Federal Government
   • Seat

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'capital' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #734

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'capital' in Written Corpus Frequency: #1253

3. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'capital' in Nouns Frequency: #309

How to pronounce capital?

1. Alex

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

How to say capital in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of capital in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of capital in Pythagorean Numerology is: 8

Examples of capital in a Sentence

1. Pete Buttigieg:

   I'm here to carry those voices to Washington, to bring solutions not from Washington but to our nation's capital, because I believe that we would be well-served if we could start to get Washington to work a little more like our best-run cities and towns rather than the other way around.

2. Akram Al Deek:

   One of the reasons for which you ultimately became a teacher, however, is the way by which you were taught. You came to realise that teaching is a political act at the heart of which lies political change. You became a teacher to rectify things. Because you had a great responsibility towards the future. As a teenager, you attended an average boys’ public school in a suburban area of a small city in the northeast of Jordan. It was a school where English was not obligatory until the sixth grade. A school where you were taught to stand up for your superiors as they walked into class, and where any eye-contact was frowned upon. A school where you were inspected for your haircut, nails, and shoes but not your concerns. A school where it mattered more where you are from than who you are. A school where the science teacher taught geography, sports, and Islamic religion, too. A school where you were grabbed by the ears and pulled up, hit repeatedly on the knuckles and slapped on the face for not remembering the capital of Cambodia. And for that you never forgot the capital of Cambodia. A school where philosophy was marginalised by religion. And where you had to wait in queues to urinate because toilets were busy with concealed homosexual activities. A school where during winter you had to wear layers and layers of wool and cotton because there was no central heating, double-glazed windows, or even curtains. A school where the drawing studio was used as a canteen by teachers during lunch-time only. A school where there was no awareness of the disconnection between the teaching curriculum and societal needs. A school where the story always goes with Mr Ali in the office, while Mrs Ali is always in the kitchen. A school where most teachers finished classes 15 to 20 minutes earlier so that they could exploit parents and students in highly expensive private classes outside the school. A school where all music classes were spent teaching you how to play the national anthem. A school where it was always easier to deny and reject than debate and accept. A school where the quiet boy was always neglected. A school where you were always asked what to do, but never did anyone ever do what you asked: to listen. A school where your colleagues were scolded for being overtaken in class by a Palestinian student.

3. Democratic SEC Commissioner Kara Stein:

   The current environment sometimes feels closer to a massive computer game than a system dedicated to allocating capital efficiently and serving investors.

4. Keith Goode:

   Investors in small miners are hungry to allocate cash even in companies like Rox that have a long way to go, teena is not a mine yet and will require huge amounts of capital and development work without any guarantees.

5. Evy Hambro:

   Gold companies need to understand if people are going to give them capital they need to have transparency around investment decisions, they don't want capital ploughed back into the business chasing production growth rather than value creation.

Images & Illustrations of capital

Popularity rank by frequency of use