1
as in supervising
to be in charge of
if you do well on this, you'll be asked to captain the next mission
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2
as in governing
to exercise authority or power over
captained the project for a few days while the boss was out of town
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in leading
to serve as leader of
you did a good job of captaining the team
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of captaining
Pat Rafter, who is assisting tennis legend and former Bay Area resident Andre Agassi in captaining Team World, certainly knows his squad is facing quite a challenge in trying to stop Alcaraz.
—
Jim Harrington, Mercury News, 19 Sep. 2025
The youth-team graduate has been a big part of Athletic’s successes in recent years under coach Ernesto Valverde, even captaining the team on occasion from the back.
—Colin Millar, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025
Co-captaining the Time Bandit, the veteran fishermen kicked off a modern-day gold rush — but the race for the rare crab took a dangerous turn when chaos erupted aboard the Titan Explorer and forced Captain Jake Anderson’s crew to abandon ship.
—Stephanie Giang-Paunon, FOXNews.com, 7 Aug. 2025
From being seen as a rugby reject to captaining an NFL team and winning a Super Bowl, Mailata’s story is proof that with dedication and hard work, international athletes can reach the pinnacle of American football.
—Sindiswa Mabunda, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Around the same time, Emily Bode’s father was captaining his high school football team, which inspired her to choose the silhouette for the collaboration and heavily influenced the retro aesthetic of the marketing.
—Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Jim Harrington, Mercury News, 19 Sep. 2025
The youth-team graduate has been a big part of Athletic’s successes in recent years under coach Ernesto Valverde, even captaining the team on occasion from the back.
—Colin Millar, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025
Co-captaining the Time Bandit, the veteran fishermen kicked off a modern-day gold rush — but the race for the rare crab took a dangerous turn when chaos erupted aboard the Titan Explorer and forced Captain Jake Anderson’s crew to abandon ship.
—Stephanie Giang-Paunon, FOXNews.com, 7 Aug. 2025
From being seen as a rugby reject to captaining an NFL team and winning a Super Bowl, Mailata’s story is proof that with dedication and hard work, international athletes can reach the pinnacle of American football.
—Sindiswa Mabunda, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Around the same time, Emily Bode’s father was captaining his high school football team, which inspired her to choose the silhouette for the collaboration and heavily influenced the retro aesthetic of the marketing.
—Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for captaining
Verb
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Although Shirley’s video implied the day care was empty, several of the violations noted in that report involved overcrowding, with too many children in some rooms and too few adults supervising them.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
1 Jan. 2026
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That’s one of the big goals of the San Diego Public Library’s winter reading challenge, explains Emily Derry, the library’s supervising librarian for youth and family services.—
Jemma Stephenson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
24 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Smith maintained many of the gifts cited by Cannon fell under exceptions to the disclosure rules, including those governing charity event tickets and gifts for birthdays or holidays.—
Caelyn Pender,
Mercury News,
7 Jan. 2026
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Or at least the craziest until Malinin began doing on ice back flips during the 2024-25 season after the International Skating Union, the sport’s global governing body, lifted a ban on the stunt.—
Scott M. Reid,
Oc Register,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Nuro is leading the testing using robotaxi engineering prototypes supervised by autonomous vehicle operators.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Jan. 2026
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Gold, sage and forest green tile flooring lined the area, leading into a room with a pool table and carpet, with a series of unique memorabilia on the walls.—
Madison E. Goldberg,
PEOPLE,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Marcano Tábata is widely identified by human rights groups as part of the command structure overseeing detention centers where political prisoners have been held, including facilities accused of systematic abuse and torture.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
6 Jan. 2026
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Calvello will serve as Mamdani’s chief government spokesperson, overseeing City Hall’s press office, with a portfolio focused on national issues, according to sources.—
Chris Sommerfeldt,
New York Daily News,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The officials were fooled, ruling it incomplete.—
The Athletic College Football Staff,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
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But two judges separately ordered the government to keep the money following, ruling last week that the administration could not skip November’s benefits entirely.—
Michelle L. Price,
Fortune,
9 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Democrats similarly notched commanding victories in county executive races in Erie, Lehigh and Northampton counties, all bellwether counties in recent presidential elections.—
Stephen Fowler,
NPR,
5 Nov. 2025
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Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi also tackles two characters with commanding rage and badass physicality.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Be careful when handling debris that may have blown into your yard.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
8 Nov. 2025
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With 40 grind settings and a 300 gram bean hopper, this electric grinder is capable of handling grinding for larger batches.—
Jack Byram,
Architectural Digest,
7 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Her mother accompanied her to appointments, managing logistics and providing emotional support.—
Jordan Greene,
PEOPLE,
7 Jan. 2026
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Tina Olson, a managing attorney with the Juvenile Lifer Unit in the State Appellate Defender Office, says the decision doesn't minimize the crimes committed – or the victims impacted – but instead ensures defendants are given fair punishments.—
Elaine Rojas-Castillo,
CBS News,
7 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Captaining.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/captaining. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
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