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Capital and Capitol: Which One to Use Where
What a pair these are: they sound identical and look nearly identical and both have meanings that relate to government. Mastering their use, however, is simple.
The key is this: capitol, the one with an "o," is very limited in use. It appears in the term Capitol Hill, and is used to refer to one very particular and famous building, to some other similar buildings, and, occasionally, to a group of buildings that includes those similar buildings. For all other meanings, the word you want is capital.
This means that in a state's capital city is a building or group of buildings properly referred to with the word capitol, with an "o." In this use capitol is synonymous with statehouse: both refer to the building or group of buildings where a state legislature meets. The phrase capital city utilizes capital because it refers to a city, not to a building or group of buildings.
Capitol with a capital "C" refers to the particular building in Washington, D.C. where the U.S. Congress meets. It often appears before other nouns in phrases like the Capitol building and Capitol police, and is very frequently used in the term Capitol Hill, which refers both to the legislative branch of the United States government as well as to the location of the Capitol building. The Capitol, like many state capitol buildings, has a rounded dome that is somewhat reminiscent of the top of an "o," which may help some remember the "o" spelling. Note that the word capital as used to describe an uppercase letter, like in the phrase capital "C", utilizes capital.
The word capital has three distinct homographs, two for noun uses and one for adjective uses. Readers should consult those entries for the various meanings of capital, but can be assured that they all end in al, rather than ol.
Examples of Capitol Hill in a Sentence
Lawrence Andrea, Journal Sentinel, 3 Apr. 2024
While the roughly 150-car train had three people on board, the incident still triggered new interest in rail safety in Washington, where lawmakers proposed sweeping legislation that remains stalled on Capitol Hill in the face of sustained lobbying by rail companies.
—Tony Romm, Washington Post, 2 Apr. 2024
It’s located in Capitol Hill, a historic neighborhood dense with restaurants, nightlife, museums and shops.
—Todd Plummer, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Apr. 2024
China is not part of that collaborative, partly because of the Wolf Amendment, a 2011 U.S. law that prohibits NASA from working with China without direct approval from lawmakers on Capitol Hill, for fear of technological theft.
—Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 1 Apr. 2024
That strongly suggests that the aid package for Ukraine, which has been stalled on Capitol Hill for months amid Republican resistance, could clear Congress within weeks.
—Catie Edmondson, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2024
The group’s reach also extends to politics; the halls of Capitol Hill and the White House are filled with former members.
—Rachel Ventresca, Fortune, 30 Mar. 2024
The company originated in 2021, after Trump was barred from Facebook and Twitter (now known as X) following the January 6th attack on Capitol Hill.
—John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 29 Mar. 2024
That may be a tough sell with Republicans on Capitol Hill, particularly in a presidential election year.
—Joel Rose, NPR, 29 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'Capitol Hill.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near Capitol Hill
Cite this Entry
“Capitol Hill.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Capitol%20Hill. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
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