capitalization

American  

[kap-i-tl-uh-zey-shuhn] / ˌkæp ɪ tl əˈzeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of capitalizing.

2. the authorized or outstanding stocks and bonds of a corporation.

3. Accounting.

   1. the total investment of the owner or owners in a business enterprise.

   2. the total corporate liability.

   3. the total arrived at after addition of liabilities.

4. conversion into stocks or bonds.

5. the act of computing the present value of future periodical payments.

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capitalization British  

/ ˌkæpɪtəlaɪˈzeɪʃən /

noun

1. 1. the act of capitalizing

   2. the sum so derived

2. accounting the par value of the total share capital issued by a company, including the loan capital and sometimes reserves

3. the act of estimating the present value of future payments, earnings, etc

4. the act of writing or printing in capital letters

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Usage

What does capitalization mean? Capitalization is the act of using capital letters.A capital letter (A, B, C, etc.) is a letter of the alphabet that is bigger than the lower case version (e.g., c, o, s) and sometimes styled differently as well (e.g., a, b, q). In English, we use capital letters for several reasons.The most common reasons we use capitalization in English are to begin a sentence and to indicate a proper noun.We capitalize the first letter of the first word of a sentence to show that this is the beginning of the sentence, as in Who took my wallet?This includes complete sentences that are used in quotations, as in Mom said, “We are going to the mall.”We also use capitalization for proper nouns, that is a particular person, place, or thing, like James, New York, or the Library of Congress.Sometimes, though, companies name themselves or their products without any capitalization or with capitalization in the middle of the word (sometimes called camel case), as in adidas, eBay, and WikiAnswers.The pronoun I is always capitalized, no matter where it is used in a sentence, as in He went to the park, but I stayed home.

Etymology

Origin of capitalization

First recorded in 1855–60; capitalize + -ation

Example Sentences

The S-1 is a comprehensive filing used by companies going public that describes the business, risks, recent performance, capitalization, and plans for the money raised in detail.

From Barron's

It is now the second-largest company in the world by market capitalization.

From MarketWatch

Total stock market capitalization amounts to 73% of gross domestic product across the EU, compared with 270% in the U.S., according to the European Commission.

From Barron's

The mega market capitalization tech companies have massive balance sheets and little debt in aggregate.

From Barron's

The rocket and satellite company is reportedly expected to seek to raise $75 billion at a $1.75 trillion valuation, which would instantly make it one of the biggest U.S. companies by market capitalization.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

• funding