caption

American  

[kap-shuhn] / ˈkæp ʃən /

noun

1. a title or explanation for a picture or illustration, as in a magazine, newspaper, or book.

2. a heading or title, as of a chapter, article, or page.

3. Movies, Television, Digital Technology.

   1. a transcription or translation of dialogue and a written description of other audio elements, as sound effects, music, or atmospheric sounds, displayed as a graphic overlay on the lower part of the screen in a television program, film, video, or video game.

   2. subtitle.

   3. a title or annotation displayed as a graphic overlay on the screen in a television program, film, video, or video game, as to set the scene, name a location, or specify a time or date.

4. Law. the heading of a legal document stating the time, place, etc., of execution or performance.

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verb (used with object)

1. to supply a caption or captions for.

   to caption a photograph.

caption British  

/ ˈkæpʃən /

noun

1. a title, brief explanation, or comment accompanying an illustration; legend

2. a heading, title, or headline of a chapter, article, etc

3. graphic material, usually containing lettering, used in television presentation

4. another name for subtitle

5. the formal heading of a legal document stating when, where, and on what authority it was taken or made

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verb

1. to provide with a caption or captions

Other Word Forms

• captionless adjective
• miscaption verb (used with object)
• subcaption noun
• supercaption noun
• uncaptioned adjective

Etymology

Origin of caption

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English capcio(u)n “seizure,” from Latin captiōn- (stem of captiō ), equivalent to capt(us) “taken” ( captive ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

This summer, there was a TikTok trend in which young women posted videos of their mothers, with the caption: “I’m not scared of aging, because this is my mom at 50.”

From The Wall Street Journal

A photo shared to both of their Instagram profiles shows the pair sat in front of the Georges Seurat painting which the production is based on, captioned with lyrics from the show.

From BBC

Corrections & Amplifications A photo caption in an earlier version of this article incorrectly said the construction was last year.

From The Wall Street Journal

To caption a video of flaming debris in January, he wrote, “Entertainment is guaranteed!” and, after the March explosion, he posted, “Rockets are hard.”

From Salon

Williams is now about six months into various projects that have involved watching video clips and writing out captions of everything that’s happening in them, and rating the quality of videos generated by prompts.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• inscription
• subtitle