1
as in commanders
a person in overall command of a ship
the captain is responsible for everything that happens to his ship in the course of a voyage
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in commandants
one in official command especially of a military force or base
the captain of the largest army ever marshaled for battle in this country
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in leaders
the person (as an employer or supervisor) who tells people and especially workers what to do
we only do what the captain tells us to, so it's not our fault when things don't work out
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in tycoons
a person of rank, power, or influence in a particular field
a fascinating magazine article profiling the captains of the American auto industry
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in supervises
to be in charge of
if you do well on this, you'll be asked to captain the next mission
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in rules
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 commands
to serve as leader of
you did a good job of captaining the team
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of captains
Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 29 May 2026
In an interview with journalist Casimiro Miguel, the 25-year-old underlined that Madrid is the club of dreams, while sharing his pride that he has been trusted as one of the team’s captains at such a young age.
—Thom Harris, New York Times, 27 May 2026
This is the latest installment of our bimonthly column Crews on Cruise, spotlighting the people who work behind the scenes of the world’s most memorable voyages—from bartenders and entertainers to ship captains and expedition leaders.
—Ashlea Halpern, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 May 2026
In addition to Bonez, Andie Bucaro, Natalia Truszkowski and Olivia Zabek were also captains, and family members escorted them during a pregame ceremony.
—Andrew Carter, Chicago Tribune, 24 May 2026
The Vijums twins, Kaija and Melija, were co-captains of their Roseville Area High School lacrosse team.
—Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 23 May 2026
The parts that remained were commanded by captains.
—Literary Hub, 20 May 2026
Celebrini joins forces with two 35-year-old alternate captains, John Tavares of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ryan O’Reilly of the Nashville Predators.
—ABC News, 14 May 2026
In addition, the states will collect catch information from anglers and for-hire captains to monitor catches and gain insight into changes in angler behavior under pilot program requirements.
—Steve Waters, Miami Herald, 9 May 2026
Tamerra Griffin, New York Times, 22 May 2026
Rozanov captains the re-named Boston Raiders in the TV adaptation.
—Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 12 May 2026
Rush lost two of his top players to The Bennett School when Reeder and fellow senior Harper Gates, both now captains for the Rebels’ premiere team, decided to pursue the new opportunity.
—Jon Poorman, Houston Chronicle, 4 Apr. 2026
Tigertail, 36, who captains airboat tours through the Everglades, is navigating his boat through the only route available given how dry the park has gotten this year.
—Ashley Miznazi, Miami Herald, 16 Mar. 2026
Outfielder Jung Hoo Lee captains the South Korean team that finished as runner-up to Team Japan in Pool C from Tokyo.
—Shayna Rubin, San Francisco Chronicle, 11 Mar. 2026
Virgil Van Dijk, Netherlands defender Virgil Van Dijk, who captains Liverpool, has widely been regarded as the best defender in the world for the last eight years.
—Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 7 Dec. 2025
As Olivia Walker in the Netflix thriller, the actress captains the White House's Situation Room with the world on the brink of nuclear war.
—Benjamin Vanhoose, PEOPLE, 21 Oct. 2025
And, John Kraus, who captains the Spirit, is ready.
—Erika I. Ritchie, Oc Register, 13 Sep. 2025
Noun
Marriott said the opposition appeared to be the final straw for his superiors, who informed staff that the department would shift the responsibilities of captains.
—Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 29 May 2026
In an interview with journalist Casimiro Miguel, the 25-year-old underlined that Madrid is the club of dreams, while sharing his pride that he has been trusted as one of the team’s captains at such a young age.
—Thom Harris, New York Times, 27 May 2026
This is the latest installment of our bimonthly column Crews on Cruise, spotlighting the people who work behind the scenes of the world’s most memorable voyages—from bartenders and entertainers to ship captains and expedition leaders.
—Ashlea Halpern, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 May 2026
In addition to Bonez, Andie Bucaro, Natalia Truszkowski and Olivia Zabek were also captains, and family members escorted them during a pregame ceremony.
—Andrew Carter, Chicago Tribune, 24 May 2026
The Vijums twins, Kaija and Melija, were co-captains of their Roseville Area High School lacrosse team.
—Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 23 May 2026
The parts that remained were commanded by captains.
—Literary Hub, 20 May 2026
Celebrini joins forces with two 35-year-old alternate captains, John Tavares of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ryan O’Reilly of the Nashville Predators.
—ABC News, 14 May 2026
In addition, the states will collect catch information from anglers and for-hire captains to monitor catches and gain insight into changes in angler behavior under pilot program requirements.
—Steve Waters, Miami Herald, 9 May 2026
Verb
Camberos, who captains the Mexican side and plays for the national team, played for Angel City and Bay FC in between a first stint with América and her current tenure, while Geyse last played for Gotham.
—Tamerra Griffin, New York Times, 22 May 2026
Rozanov captains the re-named Boston Raiders in the TV adaptation.
—Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 12 May 2026
Rush lost two of his top players to The Bennett School when Reeder and fellow senior Harper Gates, both now captains for the Rebels’ premiere team, decided to pursue the new opportunity.
—Jon Poorman, Houston Chronicle, 4 Apr. 2026
Tigertail, 36, who captains airboat tours through the Everglades, is navigating his boat through the only route available given how dry the park has gotten this year.
—Ashley Miznazi, Miami Herald, 16 Mar. 2026
Outfielder Jung Hoo Lee captains the South Korean team that finished as runner-up to Team Japan in Pool C from Tokyo.
—Shayna Rubin, San Francisco Chronicle, 11 Mar. 2026
Virgil Van Dijk, Netherlands defender Virgil Van Dijk, who captains Liverpool, has widely been regarded as the best defender in the world for the last eight years.
—Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 7 Dec. 2025
As Olivia Walker in the Netflix thriller, the actress captains the White House's Situation Room with the world on the brink of nuclear war.
—Benjamin Vanhoose, PEOPLE, 21 Oct. 2025
And, John Kraus, who captains the Spirit, is ready.
—Erika I. Ritchie, Oc Register, 13 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for captains
Noun
-
By allowing drone video feeds to be shared within larger command networks, operators and commanders can gain a more comprehensive view of ongoing operations.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
1 June 2026
-
Many Naxal commanders are not taken alive.—
Dhruv Tikekar,
CNN Money,
30 May 2026
Noun
-
Investigating active government officials in Mexico is a new strategy for the United States, which in the past refrained from targeting sitting leaders in allied countries with criminal investigations because of the clear political ramifications.—
Kate Linthicum,
Los Angeles Times,
4 June 2026
-
Beyond their immediate impact, experts say such attacks are part of a broader Russian strategy to sow fear among ordinary people and increase public pressure on Ukraine’s leaders to end the war.—
Lauren Kent,
CNN Money,
4 June 2026
Noun
-
Greek shipping tycoons, Morley said, may be intrigued by the glory of owning Onassis’s yacht; Middle Eastern oil magnates could have the means to buy a pricey piece of history.—
Michael Ballaban,
CNN Money,
9 May 2026
-
For the manifesto’s authors, a just fashion system enriches the lives of workers, their families and their communities, not the coffers of billionaire fashion tycoons.—
Jasmin Malik Chua,
Footwear News,
1 May 2026
Verb
-
Milshtein previously served as adviser to COGAT, which supervises civilian policy in the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip.—
Isaac Chotiner,
New Yorker,
19 May 2026
-
As chief of patrol, Hein supervises the most visible aspects of the Police Department that define its image in the minds of most Chicagoans, including emergency response, crisis intervention, traffic control, routine patrol and community policing efforts.—
Caroline Kubzansky,
Chicago Tribune,
16 May 2026
Verb
-
The team did well to have Dart and Carter both address the media, which was not required based on the NFL’s offseason rules for player availability.—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
29 May 2026
-
Right now, rules governing who pays when disaster strikes are too often opaque, inequitable, and poorly designed to incentivise prevention.—
Nina Seega,
Forbes.com,
20 May 2026
Verb
-
The researchers call the new platform the Insect Synergy Circuit (ISC), a system designed to respond to an insect’s physiological state instead of merely issuing movement commands.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
30 May 2026
-
The South Caucasus rarely commands attention until war breaks out, pipelines are threatened, or a great power expands its footprint.—
Wesley Alexander Hill,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2026
Noun
-
Ludwig says many breakfast skippers end up overeating at night.—
Lynn Andriani,
Martha Stewart,
13 May 2026
-
In terms of skippers, our Frank Selee might rightly be considered more philosopher than a pugilist.—
Tyler Estep,
AJC.com,
6 May 2026
Noun
-
Discussions with parents and bosses could be significant.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
31 May 2026
-
But news of the membership drew fresh scrutiny in Washington over American tech bosses’ affiliation with the university — the alma mater of China’s leader.—
J.D. Capelouto,
semafor.com,
28 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Captains.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/captains. Accessed 4 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
