Adjacent Words

Capture definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

CAPTURE, n.
1. In a general sense, the act of taking or seizing; as the capture of an enemy, of a ship, or of booty, by force, surprise or stratagem.
2. The thing taken; a prize; prey taken by force, surprise or stratagem.
3. Seizure; arrest as the capture of a criminal or debtor.
CAPTURE, v.t. To take or seize by force, surprise or stratagem, as an enemy or his property; to take by force under the authority of a commission; as to capture a ship.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the act of forcibly dispossessing an owner of property [syn: capture, gaining control, seizure]
2: a process whereby a star or planet holds an object in its gravitational field
3: any process in which an atomic or nuclear system acquires an additional particle
4: the act of taking of a person by force [syn: capture, seizure]
5: the removal of an opponent's piece from the chess board v
1: succeed in representing or expressing something intangible; "capture the essence of Spring"; "capture an idea"
2: attract; cause to be enamored; "She captured all the men's hearts" [syn: capture, enamour, trance, catch, becharm, enamor, captivate, beguile, charm, fascinate, bewitch, entrance, enchant]
3: succeed in catching or seizing, especially after a chase; "We finally got the suspect"; "Did you catch the thief?" [syn: get, catch, capture]
4: bring about the capture of an elementary particle or celestial body and causing it enter a new orbit; "This nucleus has captured the slow-moving neutrons"; "The star captured a comet"
5: take possession of by force, as after an invasion; "the invaders seized the land and property of the inhabitants"; "The army seized the town"; "The militia captured the castle" [syn: appropriate, capture, seize, conquer]
6: capture as if by hunting, snaring, or trapping; "I caught a rabbit in the trap today" [syn: capture, catch]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle French, from Latin captura, from captus Date: circa 1542 1. an act or instance of capturing: as a. an act of catching, winning, or gaining control by force, stratagem, or guile b. a move in a board game (as chess or checkers) that gains an opponent's piece c. the absorption by an atom, nucleus, or particle of a subatomic particle that often results in subsequent emission of radiation or in fission d. the act of recording in a permanent file <data capture> 2. one that has been taken (as a prize ship) II. transitive verb (captured; capturing) Date: 1574 1. a. to take captive; also to gain control of especially by force <capture a city> b. to gain or win especially through effort <captured 60 percent of the vote> 2. a. to emphasize, represent, or preserve (as a scene, mood, or quality) in a more or less permanent form <at any such moment as a photograph might capture — C. E. Montague> b. to record in a permanent file (as in a computer) 3. to captivate and hold the interest of 4. to take according to the rules of a game 5. to bring about the capture of (a subatomic particle) Synonyms: see catch

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v.tr. 1 a take prisoner; seize as a prize. b obtain by force or trickery. 2 portray in permanent form (could not capture the likeness). 3 Physics absorb (a subatomic particle). 4 (in board games) make a move that secures the removal of (an opposing piece) from the board. 5 (of a stream) divert the upper course of (another stream) by encroaching on its basin. 6 cause (data) to be stored in a computer. --n. 1 the act of capturing. 2 a thing or person captured. Derivatives: capturer n. Etymology: F f. L captura f. capere capt- take

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Capture Cap"ture, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Captured; p. pr. & vb. n. Capturing.] To seize or take possession of by force, surprise, or stratagem; to overcome and hold; to secure by effort. Her heart is like some fortress that has been captured. --W. Ivring.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Capture Cap"ture, n. [L. capture, fr. caper to take: cf. F. capture. See Caitiff, and cf. aptive.] 1. The act of seizing by force, or getting possession of by superior power or by stratagem; as, the capture of an enemy, a vessel, or a criminal. Even with regard to captures made at sea. --Bluckstone. 2. The securing of an object of strife or desire, as by the power of some attraction. 3. The thing taken by force, surprise, or stratagem; a prize; prey. Syn: Seizure; apprehension; arrest; detention.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(captures, capturing, captured) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. If you capture someone or something, you catch them, especially in a war. The guerrillas shot down one aeroplane and captured the pilot... The Russians now appear ready to capture more territory from the Chechens. ...the murders of fifteen thousand captured Polish soldiers. VERB: V n, V n from n, V-ed • Capture is also a noun. ...the final battles which led to the army's capture of the town... The shooting happened while the man was trying to evade capture by the security forces. N-UNCOUNT: oft with poss 2. If something or someone captures a particular quality, feeling, or atmosphere, they represent or express it successfully. Their mood was captured by one who said, 'Students here don't know or care about campus issues.' = encapsulate VERB: no cont, V n 3. If something captures your attention or imagination, you begin to be interested or excited by it. If someone or something captures your heart, you begin to love them or like them very much. ...the great names of the Tory party who usually capture the historian's attention. ...one man's undying love for the woman who captured his heart. VERB: V n, V n 4. If an event is captured in a photograph or on film, it is photographed or filmed. The incident was captured on videotape... The images were captured by TV crews filming outside the base. ...photographers who captured the traumatic scene. VERB: be V-ed on/in n, be V-ed, V n, also V n on/in n 5. If you capture something that you are trying to obtain in competition with other people, you succeed in obtaining it. In 1987, McDonald's captured 19 percent of all fast-food sales... = win, secure VERB: V n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. n. 1. Seizure, arrest, apprehension, catching, catch, taking captive, making prisoner. 2. Prize. II. v. a. Seize, catch, apprehend, arrest, take by force, take possession of, make prisoner.

Moby Thesaurus

abduction, acquire, apprehend, apprehension, arrest, arrestation, arrestment, bag, be seized of, bear the palm, booty, bust, carry, carry away, carry it, carry off, carry the day, catch, catching, collar, collaring, come by, come in for, come into, come out first, contract, corral, coup, derive, drag down, dragnet, draw, earn, enter into possession, finish in front, fluke, forcible seizure, gain, gain the day, get, grab, grabbing, harvest, haul, hold, kidnapping, lay hold of, make, make a killing, make an arrest, nab, nabbing, nail, net, netting, nick, obtain, pick up, picking up, pinch, power grab, prehend, prehension, procure, pull down, put under arrest, reap, run in, running in, sack, score, secure, seize, seizure, seizure of power, snatch, snatching, take, take captive, take hold of, take in, take into custody, take prisoner, take the cake, taking, taking in, taking into custody, win, win out, win the battle, win the laurels, win the palm, win the prize, win through