capitalism

[ kap-i-tl-iz-uhm ]
See synonyms for capitalism on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. an economic system in which investment in and ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange of wealth is made and maintained chiefly by private individuals or corporations, especially as contrasted to cooperatively or state-owned means of wealth.

Compare Meanings

Click for a side-by-side comparison of meanings. Use the word comparison feature to learn the differences between similar and commonly confused words.

Origin of capitalism

1
First recorded in 1850–55; capital1 + -ism

word story For capitalism

It is easy to forget that capitalism was coined not so long ago, in the mid-19th century, when the Industrial Revolution was in full swing, and individual entrepreneurs were creating new industries and amassing wealth. Terms for the other two major competing economic systems of the past two centuries— socialism and communism —were also coined around the same time. Also, about the same time it became common to designate all such coinages as “isms”: terms formed by adding the suffix -ism to a root word in order to expand its meaning to encompass a related system, theory, or practice. Thus from a fairly old word, capital, the relatively newer word, capitalism, was formed to describe the then emerging economies of the West. (Another towering ism coined later in the 19th century was, of course, Darwinism. )
On the surface, the meaning of capitalism seems straightforward, referring to an economic system in which private individuals, rather than governments, own property and businesses. But beneath the surface, strong currents of opinion and theory swirl about the term. Many people fiercely espouse capitalism as an economic freedom inseparable from democracy, as reflected in several books considered classics and still avidly read today: for example, Capitalism and Freedom by Nobel laureate Milton Friedman (first published in 1962), and Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy by Joseph A. Schumpeter (first published in 1943). So it may be a challenge to use the term without triggering a discussion of its broader political context.

Other words from capitalism

  • an·ti·cap·i·tal·ism, noun
  • pro·cap·i·tal·ism, noun

Words Nearby capitalism

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use capitalism in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for capitalism

capitalism

/ (ˈkæpɪtəˌlɪzəm) /


noun
  1. Also called: free enterprise, private enterprise an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange, characterized by the freedom of capitalists to operate or manage their property for profit in competitive conditions: Compare socialism (def. 1)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for capitalism

capitalism

An economic and political system characterized by a free market for goods and services and private control of production and consumption. (Compare socialism and communism.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.