a sleeveless garment of various lengths, fastened around the neck and falling loosely from the shoulders, worn separately or attached to a coat or other outer garment.
the capa of a bullfighter.
a piece of land jutting into the sea or some other large body of water.
the Cape.
Northeastern U.S. Cape Cod.
the SW region of South Africa, in Western Cape province
a sleeveless garment like a cloak but usually shorter
a strip of material attached to a coat or other garment so as to fall freely, usually from the shoulders
First recorded in 1610–20; from French cap(p)e, from Spanish capa or Italian cappa, from Late Latin cappa “hooded cloak”; see also cope 2
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English cap, from Middle French, from Old Provençal cap or Italian capo, from Vulgar Latin capum (unrecorded) for Latin caput “head”
Superman is easily recognizable by his red cape, a sleeveless garment that hangs from his shoulders and rustles in the wind when he flies. The word cape comes from the Latin cappa meaning "covering for the head." Capes aren't just worn by superheroes. A poncho is a type of cape that you wear in the rain to stay dry. Speaking of water, a cape is also a stretch of land that extends into a body of water — like Cape Cod, which extends into the Atlantic Ocean.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
One person has come forward to declare he will challenge Farage: Count Binface, the alter ego of comedian Jon Harvey, who regularly runs in UK elections with his trash-can shaped head and long cape.
From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026
Sword fighting plus cape plus Francophilia plus hometown pride equals yes, please.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
Especially because, with this dull, dowdy current iteration dragging its cape into theaters, it already has.
From Salon ● Jun. 27, 2026
Stone wore a sequined gold jumpsuit, unzipped to the bottom of his chest, with a matching shiny cape.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026
Belmonte had sent his formal cape over to some friends.
From "The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemingway
Spain, Cape Verde, Erling Haaland and many magical moments helped spread World Cup fever, making the ambitious tournament expansion a success despite flaws.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
For me it was Argentina being pushed by Cape Verde all the way before the debutants were knocked out.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
The 2,800-square-foot, Cape Cod-style home sat on more than two acres and was worth at least twice the amount remaining on its mortgage.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
Even before Sunday’s championship match between Spain and Argentina, there had been some clear winners at the World Cup that was co-hosted by the U.S., ranging from Cape Verde’s goalie to ranch salad dressing.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 19, 2026
National Geographic stated it best: what had taken place at Cape Gelidonya, it proclaimed, was like nothing “that came before it—it would literally change our notion of archaeology and the ocean forever.”
From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler
That belief is patently untrue, but more difficult to measure if filmmakers and studios refuse to take a real chance on their caped crusadettes.
From Salon ● Jun. 27, 2026
Presiding over the baddies, Jared Leto’s blue-skinned, caped, literally boneheaded man-demon Skeletor is meant to be the fiercest of antagonists, but even his own henchmen find his signature evil cackle to be a bit laughable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026
In theaters now, the film is set a few years into Superman’s caped career.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 12, 2025
In France, his caped and bearded figure became an emblem of Christian self-sacrifice.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2024
There, hanging on a peg, was the caped coat which he had worn, and there on the table were two damning proofs of his villainy—a pair of pistols and a black mask.
From The Bronze Eagle A Story of the Hundred Days by Orczy, Emmuska Orczy, Baroness
The pilgrimage, caping Salonen’s “Rituals,” involves dancer and choreographer Dimitri Chamblas, producer Kate Nordstrom and composer Tim Hecker.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 17, 2026
"Superpower" has everything a doubting public could want in the way of reassurance, with its determined hero caping for an embattled nation and who happens to be a huge fan of its president.
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2023
In others, however, the writers ply exhausted tropes conflating inclusive storytelling with white savior caping.
From Salon ● Jun. 14, 2023
All this somehow makes its history-inspired fabrication feel genuine and universal, caping the philosophy that ideals that make the common man super.
From Salon ● Jun. 8, 2022
This caping technique, which should be done before field dressing to avoid bloodying the hair and making invasive cuts that will be difficult for the taxidermist to conceal, leaves enough hide for a shoulder mount.
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
