Webster's English Dictionary

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capital

1. cap.i.tal \'kap-*t-*l, 'kap-t*l\ aj [ME, fr. L capitalis, fr. capit-, 
   caput head] 1a: punishable by death {a ~ crime}  1b: involving execution {~ 
   punishment}  1c: most serious {a ~ error}  of a letter  2: of or conforming 
   to the series A, B, C, etc. rather than a, b, c, etc.  3a: chief in 
   importance or influence  3b: being the seat of government  4: of or 
   relating to capital  5: EXCELLENT 
2. capital n [F or It; F, fr. It capitale, fr. capitale, adj. chief, 
   principal,] [1capital] [1capital]fr. L capitalis 1a: a stock of accumulated 
   goods esp. at a specified time and in contrast t o income received during a 
   specified period 1b: the value of these accumulated goods  1c: accumulated 
   goods devoted to the production of other goods  1d: net worth  1e: CAPITAL 
   STOCK  1f: accumulated possessions calculated to bring in income  1g: 
   persons holding capital  1h: ADVANTAGE, GAIN  2a: a capital letter; esp : 
   an initial capital letter  2b: a letter belonging to a style of alphabet 
   modeled upon the style custom arily used in inscriptions 3a: a city serving 
   as a seat of government  3b: a city preeminent in some special activity 
3. capital n [ME capitale, modif. of ONF capitel, fr. LL capitellum 
   small]head, top of column, dim. of L capit-, caput : the uppermost member 
   of a column or pilaster crowning the shaft and taki ng the weight of the 
   entablature