captain

noun cap·tain \ ˈkap-tən also ˈkap-ᵊm \

Updated on: 13 Apr 2018

Definition of captain

1 a (1) : a military leader : the commander of a unit or a body of troops

(2) : a subordinate officer commanding under a sovereign or general

(3) : a commissioned officer in the army, air force, or marine corps ranking above a first lieutenant and below a major

b (1) : a naval officer who is master or commander of a ship

(2) : a commissioned officer in the navy ranking above a commander and below a commodore and in the coast guard ranking above a commander and below a rear admiral

c : a senior pilot who commands the crew of an airplane

d : an officer in a police department or fire department in charge of a unit (such as a precinct or company) and usually ranking above a lieutenant and below a chief

2 : one who leads or supervises: such as

a : a leader of a sports team or side

b : headwaiter

c : a person in charge of hotel bellhops — called also bell captain

3 : a person of importance or influence in a field

captains of industry

—

captaincy

play \ˈkap-tən-sē\ noun

—

captainship

play \-ˌship\ noun

See captain defined for English-language learners

See captain defined for kids

Examples of captain in a Sentence

The captain has turned off the “fasten seat belt” sign.
the captain is responsible for everything that happens to his ship in the course of a voyage

Recent Examples of captain from the Web

Burridge served as the Spartans’ captain, and the center led the way with 45 points for the Division 2 finalists on 23 goals and 22 assists.

— BostonGlobe.com, "2017-18 Boys' Hockey All-Scholastics," 9 Apr. 2018
Slater, a retired Troy police captain, vigorously defended Kischnick before his arrest.

— bill laitner, Detroit Free Press, "As Troy revisits secret report, experts say public's right to know weak in Michigan," 9 Apr. 2018
Few before the tournament tipped Vidinic's side as dark horses, but team captain Mantantu Kidumu, in an interview with SHOOT, insisted the Leopards were ready to 'spring a surprise'.

— SI.com, "World Cup Countdown: 11 Weeks to Go - Broken Promises, a Dictator & the Tragedy of Zaire 1974," 7 Apr. 2018
The American captain, Robert Nicholson, declined to comment.

— CBS News, "Deck hand saved lives as fishing boat sank; captain's role under investigation," 6 Apr. 2018
Pitcher Danny Arnedo, one of two senior captains, threw all five innings while walking just four batters.

— kyle stackpole, Howard County Times, "Looper, Arnedo headline first win for Oakland Mills baseball," 6 Apr. 2018
The outcome also propels other potential candidates to the front of the pack, including a right-wing former army captain, Jair Bolsonaro, and the environmentalist Marina Silva.

— paulo trevisani, WSJ, "Brazil’s Supreme Court Rejects Former President’s Bid to Avoid Jail," 5 Apr. 2018
And Miami also released starting center Mike Pouncey and defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, two captains, in a move that cleared $24 million in cap space.

— omar kelly, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Miami's first loss to Buffalo last season convinced Gase Dolphins needed culture change," 5 Apr. 2018
Elexis Wilson, a senior at Alcorn State University and the dance troupe's captain, said.

— eileen reslen, Harper's BAZAAR, "A Fleetwood Mac Song Just Hit the Billboard Charts 40+ Years After Its Release Thanks to a Meme," 5 Apr. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of captain

Middle English capitane, from Anglo-French capitain, from Late Latin capitaneus, adjective & noun, chief, from Latin capit-, caput head — more at head

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

captain Synonyms

captain

verb

Definition of captain

transitive verb

: to be captain of : lead

captained the football team

See captain defined for English-language learners

Examples of captain in a Sentence

The ship was captained by John Smith.
She captained last year's team.

Recent Examples of captain from the Web

Terry Newsome has been the dance team director for the past 25 years, and this year the team was coached by former team captains Anna Larimore and Kathy Girling.

— tracy trobridge, Howard County Times, "A winning dance team at Glenelg [Glenelg/Glenwood/Dayton]," 5 Apr. 2018
Wilkins played 84 times for England — captaining the team for 10 games.

— steve douglas, chicagotribune.com, "Former England captain Wilkins dies at 61," 4 Apr. 2018
Smith can't captain Australia for at least at least after his playing suspension expires, Cricket Australia ruled.

— gerald imray, Fox News, "Ball tampering plot: Smith, Warner banned for 12 months," 28 Mar. 2018
Stricker has 12 PGA Tour victories and captained the winning U.S. Presidents Cup team last year.

— milwaukee, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Steve Stricker wins second straight PGA Tour Champions event," 25 Mar. 2018
Along with her enthusiasm and expertise in the field, Philips said, there were a couple of other reasons Gade was his top choice to captain the No. 5 team.

— jim ayello, Indianapolis Star, "New SPM engineer Leena Gade thrilled to know nothing about IndyCar," 31 Jan. 2018
Valencia, who has captained United for much of the season, hasn't played since 17th December when he was withdrawn 66 minutes into the 2-1 away win over West Brom.

— SI.com, "Antonio Valencia in Line to Return for Man United After Missing Last 6 Games," 10 Jan. 2018
The 6-foot netminder captained a Golden Tornadoes squad that reached the state tournament and won the Northeastern Conference.

— BostonGlobe.com, "2017-18 Boys' Soccer All-Scholastics," 26 Mar. 2018
His girlfriend, Katie Rogotzke, 30, a nurse practitioner who has completed a 50-kilometer race, captained his support team.

— elliott d. woods, Outside Online, "How Mike Foote Set an Obscure 24-Hour Skiing Record," 20 Mar. 2018

First Known Use of captain

1598

captain Synonyms

Synonyms

boss, command, control, govern, preside (over), rule;

Related Words

conduct, direct, head, lead;

administer, manage, micromanage, oversee, regulate, superintend, supervise;

dictate, dominate, domineer, lord (it over), master, oppress, reign (over), tyrannize;

conquer, subdue, subjugate;

CAPTAIN Defined for English Language Learners

captain

noun

Definition of captain for English Language Learners

: a person who is in charge of a ship or an airplane
: an officer of high rank in some branches of the military
: an officer of high rank in a police or fire department

captain

verb

Definition of captain for English Language Learners

: to be in charge of (a ship or airplane)
: to lead (a team)

CAPTAIN Defined for Kids

captain

noun cap·tain \ ˈkap-tən \

Definition of captain for Students

1 : the commanding officer of a ship

2 : a leader of a group : someone in command

the captain of a football team

3 : an officer of high rank in a police or fire department

4 : a commissioned officer in the navy or coast guard ranking above a commander

5 : a commissioned officer in the army, air force, or marine corps ranking below a major

Word Root of captain

The Latin word caput, meaning “head," gives us the root capit, which is sometimes shortened to capt. Words from the Latin caput have something to do with the head or a place where decisions are made. The capital of a state or country is the city where the government is and where decisions are made about laws. A captain is the person who heads a group and leads his members. To decapitate is to cut off someone's head.