capitalist

1 of 2

noun

cap·​i·​tal·​ist ˈka-pə-tə-list 

ˈkap-tə-

1

: a person who has capital especially invested in business

industrial capitalists

broadly : a person of wealth : plutocrat

Charitable organizations often seek help from capitalists.

2

: a person who favors capitalism

capitalist

2 of 2

adjective

variants or capitalistic

ˌka-pə-tə-ˈli-stik 

ˌkap-tə-

1

: owning capital

the capitalist class

2

a

: practicing or advocating capitalism

capitalist nations

b

: marked by capitalism

capitalist period of history

capitalistically

ˌka-pə-tə-ˈli-sti-k(ə-)lē 

ˌkap-tə-

adverb

Synonyms

Noun

• Croesus
• deep pocket
• fat cat
• have
• money
• moneybags
• plutocrat
• silk stocking

Examples of capitalist in a Sentence

Noun

capitalists who lost everything in the '29 Crash

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The two, and other venture capitalists, say in recent posts that America needs more highly-skilled workers to come to the United States under what’s known as the H-1B program. —Josh Meyer, USA TODAY, 28 Dec. 2024

Catch up quick: The skirmishes started Sunday when Trump named venture capitalist Sriram Krishnan as his adviser on AI policy. —Zachary Basu, Axios, 26 Dec. 2024

Adjective

The first time around, the series was hailed as a brutal critique of economic exploitation and capitalist society thanks to its depiction of the contestants’ backstories, as well as its focus on how the economically downtrodden are treated by others regardless of the reason for their circumstances. —Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times, 24 Dec. 2024

The capitalist feast is ironic given the franchise’s anti-capitalist critique, and Netflix has received criticism for it. —Chad De Guzman, TIME, 20 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

probably borrowed from French capitaliste "person possessing capital," from capital capital entry 2 + -iste -ist entry 1

Adjective

capital entry 2 + -ist entry 2, after capitalist entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1774, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1845, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing capitalist

• pre-capitalist

Kids Definition

capitalist

noun

cap·​i·​tal·​ist

ˈkap-ət-ᵊl-əst,

ˈkap-tᵊl-

1

: a person who has capital and especially business capital

2

: a person who supports capitalism