Use cap for a soft or close-fitting hat, especially one with a visor, and use hat when the shape is broader or more formal.
Use cap for a soft or close-fitting hat, especially one with a visor, and use hat when the shape is broader or more formal.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| She wore a straw cap with a wide brim. | She wore a straw hat with a wide brim. |
| He put on a cap over his helmet. | He put on a helmet. |
| The team wears matching capses. | The team wears matching caps. |
Use cap for a removable lid or protective top, from a bottle or pen to a tooth covering or mushroom top.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| Close the jar with its cap-sized blanket. | Close the jar with its lid. |
| The dentist put a hat on my tooth. | The dentist put a cap on my tooth. |
| Remove the bottle hat before drinking. | Remove the bottle cap before drinking. |
Use cap when an upper limit is imposed, especially for spending, prices, salaries, emissions, or usage.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| The city set a cap rent increases. | The city set a cap on rent increases. |
| There is cap of $500 for repairs. | There is a cap of $500 on repairs. |
| The cap means the minimum allowed price. | The cap means the maximum allowed price. |
Use cap with the thing being limited, often followed by at for the maximum value.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| The rule caps fees on $50. | The rule caps fees at $50. |
| The contract cap liability at $1 million. | The contract caps liability at $1 million. |
| The agency capped the floor for rent. | The agency capped the rent. |
Use cap for literal covering, and use cap off when the sense is finishing an event or series.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| The singer capped the concert. | The singer capped off the concert with a quiet encore. |
| Please cap the bottle open. | Please cap the bottle. |
| The mountain capped snow. | The mountain was capped with snow. |
Use cap mainly in phrases such as all caps, and use capital letter in formal explanation.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| Write the heading in all cap. | Write the heading in all caps. |
| Use a cap for every word in this password. | Use a capital letter for every word in this password. |
| The email was typed in capses. | The email was typed in caps. |
Use cap only in very informal contexts, and use no cap to stress that a statement is meant truthfully.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| The witness gave cap in court. | The witness lied in court. |
| That story is a hat. | That story is cap. |
| No cap means a person has no hat. | No cap means the statement is serious or true. |
Use cap as a slang verb only in casual speech, often as capping or cap on someone.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| He caps the budget about his grades. | He caps about his grades. |
| They are cap on. | They are capping on each other. |
| She cap when she said she met the singer. | She capped when she said she met the singer. |
Use context to separate the physical covering senses from the limit, writing, and slang senses, and reserve the slang meanings for informal settings.
The noun cap is confused with hat, the limit sense loses on or at, and no cap is mistaken for a literal phrase about headwear.
From Old English caeppe, from Late Latin cappa, meaning a hooded cloak or head covering. The covering idea later spread to lids, tops, limits, and finishing senses, while the modern slang developed separately in African American English.
What does cap mean as a hat?
Cap means a soft or close-fitting hat, often with a visor, worn for shade, warmth, sport, uniform, or style.
What is a cap on a bottle or tooth?
A cap can be a small lid, protective cover, or top part, such as a bottle cap, lens cap, tooth cap, or mushroom cap.
What does a cap mean in prices or spending?
A cap is an upper limit, so a price cap, salary cap, or spending cap sets the highest allowed amount.
How is cap used as a verb?
To cap something can mean to put a top on it, set an upper limit, finish it with a final touch, or surpass what came before.
What do caps mean in writing?
Caps usually means capital letters, especially in phrases such as all caps or small caps.
What does slang cap mean?
In slang, cap means a lie, false claim, or exaggerated boast, and no cap means the statement is meant as true or sincere.
Can cap be a slang verb?
Yes. To cap or be capping can mean to lie, exaggerate, boast falsely, or in older use to trade playful insults.
Where does cap come from?
Cap comes from Old English caeppe, from Late Latin cappa, a word for a hooded cloak or head covering.