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Definition of capital adjective from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

capital

adjective
 
 
/ˈkæpɪtl/
 
/ˈkæpɪtl/
Idioms
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    letter

  1.  
     [only before noun] (of letters of the alphabet) having the form and size used at the beginning of a sentence or a name
    • English is written with a capital ‘E’.
    • words that start with a capital letter
    compare lower case

    2. punishment

  2. [only before noun] involving punishment by death
    • a capital offence
    Topics Crime and punishmentc1

    3. excellent

  3. (old-fashioned) excellent
    4. Word Originnoun senses 1 to 5 Middle English (as an adjective in the sense ‘relating to the head or top’, later ‘standing at the head or beginning’): via Old French from Latin capitalis, from caput ‘head’. noun sense 6 Middle English: from Old French capitel, from late Latin capitellum ‘little head’, diminutive of Latin caput.
Idioms
with a capital A, B, etc.
  1. used to emphasize that a word has a stronger meaning than usual in a particular situation
    • He was romantic with a capital R.
See capital in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
Check pronunciation: capital

Nearby words

trait
noun
 
 
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