capture

[ kap-cher ]

/ ˈkæp tʃər /

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See synonyms for: capture / captured / captures / capturing on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), cap·tured, cap·tur·ing.

to take by force or stratagem; take prisoner; seize: The police captured the burglar.

to gain control of or exert influence over: an ad that captured our attention; a TV show that captured 30% of the prime-time audience.

to take possession of, as in a game or contest: to capture a pawn in chess.

to represent or record in lasting form: The movie succeeded in capturing the atmosphere of Berlin in the 1930s.

Computers.

to enter (data) into a computer for processing or storage.
to record (data) in preparation for such entry.

noun

the act of capturing.

the thing or person captured.

Physics. the process in which an atomic or nuclear system acquires an additional particle.

Crystallography. substitution in a crystal lattice of a trace element for an element of lower valence.

OTHER WORDS FOR capture

1 catch, arrest, snare, apprehend, grab, nab.

6 seizure, arrest, apprehension.

See synonyms for capture on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR capture

1, 6 release.

See antonyms for capture on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of capture

1535–45; <Middle French <Latin captūra, equivalent to capt(us) taken (past participle of capere to take) + -ūra-ure

OTHER WORDS FROM capture

cap·tur·a·ble, adjectivecap·tur·er, nounpre·cap·ture, adjective, verb (used with object), pre·cap·tured, pre·cap·tur·ing.un·cap·tur·a·ble, adjective

un·cap·tured, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use capture in a sentence

For me, meeting Oscar de la Renta was one of those uncaptured but formative moments in my modeling career.
How Oscar de la Renta Made Me a Supermodel|Karlie Kloss|March 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The uncaptured hand closed over hers, holding it tighter than she herself could hold.
The Creators|May Sinclair
Their ardor was greatest, however, in assaulting some uncaptured summit; and several such fell before their conquering attack.
A Midsummer Drive Through The Pyrenees|Edwin Asa Dix
If the place is uncaptured to-morrow morning, and your wires have gone right, the chief danger on this side will be past.
The Half-Hearted|John Buchan

Only the city remains uncaptured, but it is mine whenever I choose to take it.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, May, 1930|Various
She still had the slimness of immature girlhood, the adorable shy daring of some uncaptured wood nymph.
Mavericks|William MacLeod Raine

British Dictionary definitions for capture

capture

/ (ˈkæptʃə) /

verb (tr)

to take prisoner or gain control overto capture an enemy; to capture a town

(in a game or contest) to win control or possession ofto capture a pawn in chess

to succeed in representing or describing (something elusive)the artist captured her likeness

physics (of an atom, molecule, ion, or nucleus) to acquire (an additional particle)

to insert or transfer (data) into a computer

noun

the act of taking by force; seizure

the person or thing captured; booty

physics a process by which an atom, molecule, ion, or nucleus acquires an additional particle

Also called: piracy geography the process by which the headwaters of one river are diverted into another through erosion caused by the second river's tributaries

the act or process of inserting or transferring data into a computer

Derived forms of capture

capturer, noun

Word Origin for capture

C16: from Latin captūra a catching, that which is caught, from capere to take

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

capture

OTHER WORDS FOR capture

OPPOSITES FOR capture

Origin of capture

OTHER WORDS FROM capture

Words related to capture

How to use capture in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for capture

Derived forms of capture

Word Origin for capture