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• cap
  cap

  noun

  a close-fitting covering for the head, usually of soft supple material and having no visor or brim.
• CAP
  CAP

  abbreviation

  Civil Air Patrol.
• cap.
  cap.

  abbreviation

  (in prescriptions) let the patient take.

cap

¹ American  

[kap] / kæp /

noun

1. a close-fitting covering for the head, usually of soft supple material and having no visor or brim.

2. a brimless head covering with a visor, such as a baseball cap.

3. a head covering that denotes rank, occupation, religious order, or the like.

   a nurse's cap.

4. mortarboard.

5. anything that resembles or suggests a covering for the head in shape, use, or position.

   Please replace the cap on the toothpaste tube when finished using it.

6. a mobcap.

7. a maximum limit, such as one that is set by law or agreement on prices, wages, spending, etc., during a certain period of time; ceiling.

   We've had to set a 3 percent cap on pay increases for this year.

8. summit; top; apex; acme.

9. Mycology. the pileus, or horizontal portion, of a mushroom.

10. Botany. calyptra.

11. Mathematics. the symbol ∩, used to indicate the intersection of two sets.

12. Mining. a short, horizontal beam at the top of a prop for supporting part of a roof.

13. a percussion cap.

14. a noise-making device for toy pistols that is made of a small quantity of explosive wrapped in paper or other thin material.

15. Chiefly British an instance of playing in an international game or match as part of a national team.

    The 17-year-old has already got her first cap for Wales.

16. Slang. lying talk; exaggeration.

    No way did you get two grand for that old wreck of a car—that’s cap.

    I see movie stars in this bar all the time, no cap.

17. Chiefly British Slang. a contraceptive diaphragm.

18. Nautical. a fitting of metal placed over the head of a spar, as a mast or bowsprit, and having a collar for securing an additional spar.

19. a new tread that is applied to a worn tire.

20. Architecture. capital.

21. Carpentry. a metal plate placed over the iron of a plane to break the shavings as they rise.

22. Fox Hunting. capping fee.

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verb (used with object)

capped, capping

1. to close or cover with or as if with a cap.

   Cap the jug of bleach tightly after each use.

2. to complete (often used withoff ).

   We capped our dinner with a shared slice of chocolate cake.

   A talent night involving all the campers capped off the week.

3. follow up with something as good or better; surpass; outdo.

   to cap one joke with another.

4. to serve as a cap, covering, or top to; overlie.

   Snow capped the distant peaks.

5. to put a maximum limit on (prices, wages, spending, etc.).

   We’ve capped the contractor’s hours at 75 per month.

6. Chiefly British (of a national team) to play (a chosen player) in an international game or match (used in the passive).

   He has been capped for Brazil.

   She was capped by England twice.

verb (used without object)

capped, capping

1. Slang. to lie or exaggerate.

   Don't cap—no way that's your car.

2. Chiefly British to play in an international game or match as part of a national team.

   She capped for England twice.

3. Fox Hunting. to hunt with a hunting club of which one is not a member, on payment of a capping fee.

idioms

1. set one's cap for,

   1. to pursue as a potential mate.

      He set his cap for the beautiful dancer.

   2. to have as a goal or destination.

      She had already set her cap for a career in politics.

      Setting his cap for the big city, he packed his things and left.

2. cap in hand, humbly; in supplication.

   He went to his father cap in hand and begged his forgiveness.

cap ² American  

[kap] / kæp /

noun

1. a capital letter.

2. Usually caps uppercase.

   Please set the underlined in caps.

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verb (used with object)

capped, capping

1. to write or print in capital letters, or make an initial letter a capital; capitalize.

cap ³ American  

[kap] / kæp /

noun

Slang.

1. a capsule, especially of a narcotic drug.

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CAP ⁴ American  

Also C.A.P.

abbreviation

1. Civil Air Patrol.

2. Common Agricultural Policy: a coordinated system established in 1960 by the European Economic Community for stabilizing prices of farm products of its member countries.

3. computer-aided publishing.

4. Stock Exchange. convertible adjustable preferred (stock).

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cap. ⁵ American  

abbreviation

1. (in prescriptions) let the patient take.

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cap. ⁶ American  

abbreviation

1. chapter.

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cap. ⁷ American  

abbreviation

1. capacity.

2. capital.

3. capitalize.

4. capitalized.

5. capital letter.

6. foolscap.

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cap ¹ British  

/ kæp /

noun

1. a covering for the head, esp a small close-fitting one made of cloth or knitted

2. such a covering serving to identify the wearer's rank, occupation, etc

   a nurse's cap

3. something that protects or covers, esp a small lid or cover

   lens cap

4. an uppermost surface or part

   the cap of a wave

5. 1. See percussion cap

   2. a small amount of explosive enclosed in paper and used in a toy gun

6. sport

   1. an emblematic hat or beret given to someone chosen for a representative team

      he has won three England caps

   2. a player chosen for such a team

7. the upper part of a pedestal in a classical order

8. the roof of a windmill, sometimes in the form of a dome

9. botany the pileus of a mushroom or toadstool

10. hunting

    1. money contributed to the funds of a hunt by a follower who is neither a subscriber nor a farmer, in return for a day's hunting

    2. a collection taken at a meet of hounds, esp for a charity

11. anatomy

    1. the natural enamel covering a tooth

    2. an artificial protective covering for a tooth

12. See Dutch cap

13. an upper financial limit

14. a mortarboard when worn with a gown at an academic ceremony (esp in the phrase cap and gown )

15. meteorol

    1. the cloud covering the peak of a mountain

    2. the transient top of detached clouds above an increasing cumulus

16. humbly, as when asking a favour

17. the allusion or criticism seems to be appropriate to a particular person

18. (of a woman) to be determined to win as a husband or lover

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verb

1. to cover, as with a cap

   snow capped the mountain tops

2. informal to outdo; excel

   your story caps them all

   to cap an anecdote

3. to provide the finishing touch

   we had sun, surf, cheap wine, and to cap it all a free car

4. sport to select (a player) for a representative team

   he was capped 30 times by Scotland

5. to seal off (an oil or gas well)

6. to impose an upper limit on the level of increase of (a tax, such as the council tax)

   rate-capping

7. hunting to ask (hunt followers) for a cap

8. to award a degree to

cap. ² British  

abbreviation

1. capital

2. capitalize

3. capitalization

4. capital letter

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CAP ³ British  

abbreviation

1. Common Agricultural Policy: (in the EU) the system for supporting farm incomes by maintaining agricultural prices at agreed levels

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cap More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing cap

• feather in one's cap
• hat
• hat (cap) in hand
• if the shoe (cap) fits, wear it
• put on one's thinking cap
• set one's cap for

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Other Word Forms

• capper
  noun
• capless
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of cap¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English cappe “headdress, hat, cap,” Old English cæppe “hood, cape, cope,” from Late Latin cappa “hooded cloak, cap”; cf. cape ¹

Origin of cap²

First recorded in 1895–1900; by shortening

Origin of cap³

First recorded in 1940–45; by shortening of capsule

Origin of cap.⁵

From the Latin word capiat

Origin of cap.⁶

From Latin capitulum “small head, capital of a column, cross beam” or Latin caput “head, to, summit, person”

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Explanation

A cap is a hat that fits snugly on your head. You might wear a bathing cap when you swim, to keep your hair dry. Many caps don't have brims, while hats often do. You can even describe someone's hair using the word cap: "She has a glossy cap of dark hair." Another kind of cap is a lid: "Put the cap back on the ginger ale or it'll go flat!" And to cap is to limit, as when a school caps the number of students at 500. The root is the Latin word caput, or "head."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cap CAP cap. capped capping

By the standards of “Street Fighter,” Ken and Ryu are actually fairly normal — this is a bizarro universe in which Bison dresses like a Nazi fashionista, complete with flowing cape and a peaked cap.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

While its market cap has fallen closer to earth from its post-IPO peak, that has done little to diminish endowments’ returns because of how hugely its valuation soared in recent years.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

The grainy footage, which has no audio, is said to show her wearing a yellow shirt, a baseball cap and a backpack while browsing items, including Molly the bird.

From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026

Apple now has a market cap of just over $5 trillion, making it the second most valuable company in the U.S. after Nvidia.

From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026

A young boy wearing a newsboy cap twisted around and stared at me with an unsmiling look.

From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu

I saw her aptitude firsthand as I tailed her around CAP.

From Slate ● Oct. 15, 2026

That success, and the money that nourishes it, has battalions of fans beyond Los Angeles all but marching outside ballparks with picket signs reading “SALARY CAP NOW.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 22, 2026

CAP Tactical was closed on Sunday and Monday and a call requesting comment was not returned by Monday afternoon.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 28, 2026

Paris-based Capgemini CAP 2.62%increase; green up pointing triangle said it would sell a division that provides consulting services to government agencies in the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 1, 2026

CAP Rain had the pickup, so that left me on foot.

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman

The person alleged in an interview that the sponsorship deal was “1,000% a way to circumvent the salary cap. It was funneling money from the Clippers through Daktronics back to Kawhi.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

A person Torre identified as an employee of Aspiration’s finance department, his face and voice obscured, recalled being told of the Leonard deal: “It was to circumvent the salary cap. LOL.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2025

"It also comes down to the salary cap. We're really hopeful that we'll find a contract, but we'll just have to sit tight and wait and hopefully something comes along."

From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2023

"We do not and will not recognise any cap. We are working so that this system does not harm our own interests," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

From Reuters ● Mar. 7, 2023

“You can’t wear a hunting cap. This is the Paradise Vendors’ uniform.”

From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole

Men can contribute to babies well into their 80s—yes, sperm quality declines but not that much—while the ability to get pregnant is pretty much capped at age 45.

From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026

Stanway's strikes in the last five days capped off a season in which she finished as England's top scorer and netted 11 times in her last 11 matches.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

White walls and broad windows keep the mountains and ocean in view, while a blue door opens onto an entryway capped by a 24-karat gold-leaf dome.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

Debit-card fees have been capped since 2011 under an amendment added to the landmark Dodd-Frank Act, despite heated opposition from those parties.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

He stared at her dim face, the forehead capped with curly black hair.

From "Native Son" by Richard Wright

The merger could finalize by early next month, capping the 43-year-old tech scion’s meteoric rise into one of Hollywood’s most influential figures.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2026

But since then, Chelsea have turned dominant performances into results, winning three matches in a row, capping it off with a well-rounded display against Arsenal, who are seven points behind City in seventh spot.

From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026

That stems in part from a decision by the Tatas about a century ago to set up trusts that would hold controlling stakes in the Tata Group, thus capping their personal wealth.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026

Target yesterday finally named a new marketing chief, capping a prolonged process with the appointment of longtime Hilton CMO Mark Weinstein.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

She was all in white, with an elegantly beaded headdress capping her hair.

From "The Devil's Arithmetic" by Jane Yolen

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Related Words

• beat
• clinch
• complete
• cover
• crown
• eclipse
• exceed
• finish
• surpass
• wrap up

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