capricious
Americanadjective
Synonym Usage
See fickle.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of capricious
First recorded in 1585–95; from French capricieux, from Italian capriccioso capriccioso
Explanation
Capricious is an adjective to describe a person or thing that's impulsive and unpredictable, like a bride who suddenly leaves her groom standing at the wedding altar. You can criticize a fickle-minded person as capricious, but it could just as well describe quickly changing weather, as in "capricious spring storms." It's the adjective form of the noun caprice, which means a sudden change of mood. Caprice might come from capra, the Italian word for "goat" (because goats are frisky), or from capo, "head" + riccio, "hedgehog." Why bring hedgehogs into it? If you have a "hedgehog head," you are so scared that your hair is standing straight on end. A scared person makes sudden starts this way and that, just as a capricious person does.
Vocabulary lists containing capricious
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
You really see this change, and yet it doesn’t feel capricious because he has been listening the whole time.
From Salon ● Jul. 5, 2026
He said he "didn't destroy, rip, tear, peel, or remove any part" of the paint and described his arrest as "arbitrary, capricious prosecution".
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
In her ruling, she said the government's designation of Anthropic as a supply chain risk was "likely both contrary to law and arbitrary and capricious."
From Barron's ● Mar. 26, 2026
Such arrests appear arbitrary and capricious, and are unlikely to survive scrutiny by the courts, Judge Pitts ruled Wednesday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 25, 2025
It claimed that it had done nothing wrong, that the regulators were being capricious, and announced no special losses on its $20 billion portfolio of subprime loans.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
