capitalism
//ˈkapɪt(ə)lɪz(ə)m//
Forms
- Plural
- capitalisms
Definitions
1.A socio-economic system based on private ownership of resources, and capital and their exploitation for profit.
Frequency
Overall
Rare· #4588
By learning goal
- Everyday conversation
- Rare
- General reading & writing
- Rare
- Academic
- Rare
- Literature
- Rare
Related words
Word family
Etymology
Borrowed from French capitalisme (“the condition of one who is rich”); equivalent to capital + -ism.
Derived from Proto-Indo-European *káput (“head”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kap-.
First used in English by novelist William Thackeray in The Newcomes [1854-1855].