caprice

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noun ca·price \ kə-ˈprēs \

Definition of caprice

1 a :a sudden, impulsive, and seemingly unmotivated notion or action

policy changes that seem to be motivated by nothing more than caprice

b :a sudden usually unpredictable condition, change, or series of changes

the caprices of the weather

2 :a disposition to do things impulsively

a preference for democratic endeavor over authoritarian caprice

3 :capriccio 3

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Examples of caprice in a Sentence

… Montana's "Durum Triangle," where the caprice of microclimates has led farmers to complain not of floods but of drought. —Florence Williams, New Republic, 16 Aug. 1999
But Castro has his army and his secret police and a reputation for ferocious caprice, and so he can make a whole people dance to his dementias. —Jack Beatty, Atlantic, January 1987
I'm allowing about ten days between here and the U.S.A. (that may be too much or too little, depending on the caprice of the Italian mails). —James Wright, letter, 28 May 1979
the caprices of the weather
Employees have complained of being at the mercy of the manager's every whim and caprice.
policy changes that seem to be motivated by nothing more than caprice

Recent Examples of caprice from the Web

There is a loss in that—in the elimination of some of the wonder at the universe’s seeming caprice.

— jeffrey kluger, Time, "The Beauty and Science of a Total Solar Eclipse," 18 Aug. 2017
Buy Photo This week has constituted a case study in the caprice of summer rains.

— anthony r. wood, Philly.com, "What's with the downpours? Half a foot in some areas since Sunday," 25 July 2017
This might literally be the only Caprice that can turn on with the push of a button, but that doesn’t soften its growl.

— andy benoit, SI.com, "24 Hours With ... Patrick Peterson, the NFL’s Only Shutdown Cornerback. (Just Ask Him)," 19 July 2017
In fact, twice — once at the hands of their killers and again at the caprices of the ME [medical examiner].

— deanna boyd, star-telegram.com, "Could the death of one abused child have saved the life of another?," 31 May 2017
But a sense of the caprice of fate never left Milosz.

— adam kirsch, The New Yorker, "Czeslaw Milosz’s Battle for Truth," 29 May 2017
But in a broader sense, this genus has a story spanning two continents and ten million years, populations of the dinosaur expanding and shrinking with the caprices of nature.

— brian switek, Scientific American Blog Network, "Canada's Unexpected Ostrich Mimic," 15 May 2017
Nature, with its cruelties and caprices, is more powerful than you.

— mary schmich, chicagotribune.com, "What the heck kind of spring is this, Chicago?," 2 May 2017
This is not just the story of Mozart and his starling, but a love letter to vulgarity, messiness, caprice and the beauty of things that don’t fit, don’t go where they are supposed to.

— helen macdonald, New York Times, "Biographies of Cecil the Lion and Others in ‘Animals Strike Curious Poses’," 13 Mar. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'caprice.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of caprice

French, from Italian capriccio caprice, shudder, perhaps from capo head (from Latin caput) + riccio hedgehog, from Latin ericius — more at head, urchin

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1667

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caprice Synonyms

Synonyms

bee, whim, crank, fancy, freak, humor, kink, maggot, megrim, notion, vagary, vagrancy, whimsy (also whimsey)

Related Words

capriciousness, fancifulness, fantasy (also phantasy), freakishness, impetuosity, whimsicality; conceit; concept, conception, image, impression, mind's eye, picture, thought; brainstorm, inspiration

Near Antonyms

levelheadedness, practicality, reasonability, reasonableness; fastness, firmness, fixedness, immovability, immovableness, immutability, inflexibility, invariability; changelessness, constancy, stability, steadfastness, steadiness

Synonym Discussion of caprice

caprice, whim, vagary, crotchet mean an irrational or unpredictable idea or desire. caprice stresses lack of apparent motivation and suggests willfulness.