capsule

1 a small mass containing medicine to be taken orally took an antibiotic capsule three times a day for a week Synonyms cap, pill, lozenge, tabletRelated Words cure, drug, medication, medicinal, pharmaceutical, physic, remedy, specific; miracle drug, wonder drug; potion, preparation; dosage, dose; drop, gelcap; bolus, pilule

2 something that encloses another thing especially to protect it a capsule containing all sorts of items from our era that is to be opened 100 years from now Synonyms armor, case, casing, cocoon, cover, covering, encasement, housing, hull, husk, jacket, pod, sheath, shellRelated Words cartridge, cassette (also casette); bark, crust; carapace, house, mail, panoply, plate, plating, shield; cuticle, hide, skin; envelope, package, wrapper; backing, coating, coverture, facing

3 a short statement of the main points capsules of the day's major news stories appear on the paper's second page Synonyms abstract, breviary, brief, summary, conspectus, digest, encapsulation, epitome, inventory, outline, précis, recap, recapitulation, résumé (or resume also resumé), roundup, rundown, run-through, sum, summa, summarization, summing-up, sum-up, synopsis, wrap-upRelated Words abbreviation, abridgment (or abridgement), compend, compendium, condensation, curtailment, shortening; simplification, streamlining; rehash, reprise; conclusion, epilogue (also epilog)Near Antonyms amplification, enlargement, expansion; addendum, supplement

to reduce in size or volume by or as if by pressing parts or members together newscasts that capsule complex, important stories into one-minute bits for easy digestion by viewers Synonyms compress, capsulize, collapse, compact, condense, constrict, constringe, contract, narrow (down), squeeze, telescopeRelated Words cram, crowd, jam, jam-pack, pack; abbreviate, abridge, curtail, shorten; boil down, downsize, shrink; concentrate, consolidate; simplify, streamline; decrease, diminish, lessenNear Antonyms dilate, disperse, dissipate, scatter; distend, inflate, swellAntonyms decompress, expand, open, outspread, outstretch