captain
Americannoun
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captains
plural
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a person who is at the head of or in authority over others; chief; leader.
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an officer ranking in most armies above a first lieutenant and below a major.
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an officer in the U.S. Navy ranking above a commander and below a rear admiral or a commodore.
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a military leader.
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an officer in the police department, ranking above a lieutenant and usually below an inspector.
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an officer of the fire department, usually in command of a company, ranking above a lieutenant and below a chief or assistant chief.
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the commander of a merchant vessel.
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the pilot of an airplane.
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a local official in a political party responsible for organizing votes on a ward or precinct level.
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Sports. the field leader of a team.
The captain of the home team elected to receive on the kickoff.
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a person of great power and influence, especially based on economic wealth.
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South Midland and Southern U.S. an unofficial title of respect for a man (sometimes used humorously or ironically).
verb (used with object)
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captains,
present (3rd person singular)
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captained,
past participle, past
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captaining
present participle
noun
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the person in charge of and responsible for a vessel
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an officer of the navy who holds a rank junior to a rear admiral but senior to a commander
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an officer of the army, certain air forces, and the marine corps who holds a rank junior to a major but senior to a lieutenant
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the officer in command of a civil aircraft, usually the senior pilot
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the leader of a team in games
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a person in command over a group, organization, etc; leader
a captain of industry
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a police officer in charge of a precinct
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(formerly) a head waiter
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Also called: bell captain. a supervisor of bellboys in a hotel
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informal a person who is buying drinks for people in a bar
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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captainsimple
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captainssimple
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have captainedperfect
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has captainedperfect
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am captainingprogressive
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are captainingprogressive
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is captainingprogressive
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have been captainingperfect progressive
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has been captainingperfect progressive
Past
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captainedsimple
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had captainedperfect
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was captainingprogressive
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were captainingprogressive
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had been captainingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of captain
1325–75; Middle English capitain < Anglo-French capitain, captayn < Late Latin capitāneus chief, equivalent to capit- (stem of caput ) head + -ān ( us ) -an + -eus -eous
Explanation
A captain is the person in charge of a group. The captain of a high school soccer team is usually an elected or appointed leader. The word captain can describe any leader, but it's traditionally been the name for the person on a boat or ship with the highest rank. The captain of a fishing boat is responsible for making decisions about what route to take and how best to avoid bad weather. When she steers the boat, you can say she captains it. The word comes from the Late Latin capitaneus, "chief," from caput, or "head."
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.
See Examples For:
The captain of the Zhong Cheng Chang Ling said the ship management company told him to contact the Houthis out of an abundance of caution.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
Raised in Seattle, Dallaire was captain of the lacrosse team at Vassar College and went on to earn an M.B.A. from New York University’s Stern School of Business.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
Props Nicky Smith and Archie Griffin start alongside captain Dewi Lake, while Dafydd Jenkins has shaken off a knee injury to resume his Six Nations partnership with Ben Carter.
From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026
His mother was a member of the august Carrillo family, and his father was a captain in the Mexican army, killed in the Cahuenga Pass when his namesake son was just a few weeks old.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2026
To save money, the captain had arranged for them to stay in military housing.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
In the process, Tyree notes, the filmmakers reveal that unlike in the past, when captains of industry launched art museums and libraries, this generation isn't as interested in philanthropy.
From Barron's ● Oct. 18, 2026
At sea, these programs often rely on self-reported information from ship captains rather than having auditors inspect vessels offshore.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
It also sweetened advertised salaries for new captains and first officers, according to its website.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
Opinion on whether she should continue as captain was sharply divided among former women players and captains.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
Captain Newport gathers the other ship captains and high-ranking gentlemen on the Susan Constant and opens the box.
From "Blood on the River" by Elisa Carbone
Poulter's decision to leave comes in the same week as 2010 Open champion Oosthuizen, who captained the Southern Guards GC team and said quitting was the "hardest decision" of his career.
From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026
Thomas captained England Under-19s to the final of the World Cup earlier this year and made two centuries for Somerset in the County Championship during the summer.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
He has captained Bologna since 2023 and led them to their first Coppa Italia in over 50 years in 2025.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026
Doing that would betray their ignorance of the show’s legacy, especially the five seasons that Allen captained.
From Salon ● Sep. 24, 2026
The two brothers who captained the sister ships Quicksilver and Greyhound seemed sympathetic and invited them into the cabin for a glass of Arbor red.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
Root, often captaining from short leg, set fields that crowded the bat, often with seven catchers.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
Take a seat on a curvaceous wooden bench and imagine you’re captaining a spaceship.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026
Four years later, Josef Masopust officially won the Ballon d'Or after captaining Czechoslovakia to the World Cup final.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
Manchester City midfielder Rodri played a starring role in captaining Spain to Sunday's World Cup final victory over Argentina.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
Todd steered the boat like he was captaining a great yacht.
From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers
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