Capitol
[kap-i-tl]
- the building in Washington, D.C., used by the Congress of the U.S. for its sessions.
- (often lowercase) a building occupied by a state legislature.
- the ancient temple of Jupiter at Rome, on the Capitoline.
- the Capitoline.
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Origin of Capitol
1690–1700, Americanism; < Latin capitōlium temple of Jupiter on Capitoline hill, Rome, taken to be a derivative of caput head; replacing Middle English capitolie < Old North French
Usage note
See capital1.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for capitol
Contemporary Examples
Excerpted from Capitol Men: The Epic Story of Reconstruction Through the Lives of the First Black Congressmen by Philip Dray.
So not only will the GOP have control in the Senate, it will move the center of gravity on Capitol Hill hard to starboard.
Tool around Capitol Hill, which brims gay bars, restaurants, and clubs.
The Ultimate LGBT Travel Bucket ListDecember 12, 2014
In the meantime, just as the bill passed its first hurdle, snow flakes started to fall down on the Capitol.
Katniss Everdeen has broken the Hunger Games and entered open war against the Capitol.
Historical Examples
The address to the crowd at the Capitol was broadcast on a loudspeaker.
Let us give this capitol back to the people to whom it belongs.
There's the Capitol ahead of us, and some of our troops are going into it.
The Rock of ChickamaugaJoseph A. Altsheler
I could not camp in the Capitol Square, even if I had wished so to do.
Southern Lights and ShadowsVarious
He had his own ship on a line with the Capitol in a matter of seconds.
The Hammer of ThorCharles Willard Diffin
Capitol
- another name for the Capitoline
- the temple on the Capitoline
- the Capitol the main building of the US Congress
- Also called: statehouse (sometimes not capital) (in the US) the building housing any state legislature
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Word Origin
C14: from Latin Capitōlium, from caput head
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
Word Origin and History for capitol
Capitol
n.
"building where U.S. Congress meets," 1793 (in writings of Thomas Jefferson), from Latin Capitolium, temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the Capitoline Hill in ancient Rome. Used earlier of Virginia state houses (1699). Its use in American public architecture deliberately evokes Roman republican imagery. With reference to the Roman citadel, it is recorded in English from late 14c., via Old North French capitolie. Relationship of Capitoline to capital is likely but not certain.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper