capital
B1Formal, Semi-formal, Informal (context-dependent)
Definition
Meaning
1. The most important city of a country or region, usually where the government is based. 2. Wealth in the form of money or assets used to start or grow a business.
3. A letter of the alphabet in its large form (e.g., A, B, C). 4. Excellent, first-rate, or most important (as in 'capital idea'). 5. Punishable by or involving death (as in 'capital punishment').
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
The meaning shifts dramatically across contexts (geography, finance, typography, law, quality). The 'most important' sense connects several meanings.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
Usage is largely identical in core meanings. 'Capital letter' is slightly more common than 'uppercase letter' in UK English. The interjection 'Capital!' meaning excellent is now archaic but historically British.
Connotations
In political contexts, 'capital' vs. 'labour' has stronger historical/ideological weight in both varieties.
Frequency
Equally frequent in business and political writing.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
capital for + noun/gerund (We need capital for expansion)capital of + place (capital of France)capital + noun (capital city, capital letter)invest/raise/provide capitalVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “make capital out of something (to use a situation to your advantage)”
- “with a capital 'X' (emphatically; e.g., 'He's trouble with a capital T')”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Refers to financial assets, investment, or a company's funding base (e.g., 'seed capital').
Academic
Used in economics (capital vs. labour), political geography (capital city), law (capital offence), and linguistics (capitalisation).
Everyday
Most commonly refers to a capital city or a capital/uppercase letter.
Technical
Specific meanings in accounting (capital assets), architecture (capital of a column), and heraldry.
Examples
By Part of Speech
noun
British English
- London is the capital of the United Kingdom.
- The business needed more capital to survive.
- Remember to start your sentence with a capital.
American English
- Washington, D.C. is the nation's capital.
- They provided the venture capital for the startup.
- Please write your name in capitals.
adverb
British English
- Archaic/obsolete: 'He performed capitally well.'
American English
- Archaic/obsolete: 'She sings capitally.'
adjective
British English
- It was a capital mistake to underestimate her.
- Capital punishment remains a divisive issue.
American English
- That's a capital idea!
- The defendant faced a capital charge.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- Paris is the capital of France.
- Write your name with a capital letter.
- The company has a lot of money.
- We need more capital to open a second shop.
- The capital city is often the busiest.
- Capital letters are used for names and places.
- The firm raised significant capital through a share issue.
- Making capital out of his rival's error, he gained public support.
- The debate on capital punishment is highly moral.
- The flight of capital from emerging markets caused a currency crisis.
- Social capital is as crucial as financial capital for community projects.
- His actions constituted a capital offence under the old statute.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Imagine a CAP sitting on the TALLest building in the most important CITY. The CAP-TALL city has the most MONEY.
Conceptual Metaphor
IMPORTANCE IS SIZE (capital letter), IMPORTANCE IS CENTRALITY (capital city), MONEY IS A LIQUID/FUEL (flow of capital).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Not translating 'capital' (finance) as 'капитал' when it means 'capital city' (столица).
- Confusing 'capital letter' with 'заглавная буква' (correct) but sometimes misused as 'прописная' (which often means handwritten lowercase).
- The adjective 'capital' meaning 'excellent' is archaic and not used like 'капитальный' (major, capital).
Common Mistakes
- Using 'capitol' (the building) when 'capital' (the city) is meant.
- Confusing 'capital' with 'capitol'.
- Using 'capital' uncountably when a plural might be expected (e.g., 'We have enough capital', not 'capitals').
- Misspelling as 'capitol' in financial contexts.
Practice
Quiz
In which sentence is 'capital' used in a financial sense?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
'Capital' refers to a city, wealth, or a letter. 'Capitol' (often capitalized) refers specifically to the building where a legislature meets, especially in the US (the Capitol in Washington, D.C.).
It is usually uncountable in the financial sense (e.g., 'We need more capital'). It is countable when referring to cities or letters (e.g., 'European capitals', 'write in capitals').
Yes, but this usage as an adjective (e.g., 'a capital idea') is now dated and somewhat archaic, found more in older literature or humorous imitation.
It's an economic term referring to the skills, knowledge, and experience possessed by an individual or population, viewed in terms of their value or cost to an organization or country.
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