NYT Dictionary

CAPACITY

/kəˈpasɪte/
NounAdjectiveca-PA-ci-tyca-pa-ci-ty · 4 syllablesGrade 6

Accepted in official NYT Spelling Bee puzzle years: 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2024

Meaning

The ability to hold, receive, or absorb.

Etymology

Origin: Middle English

Etymology tree substratebor.? Proto-Indo-European *kap- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *kapyéti Proto-Italic *kapjō Archaic Latin kapiō Latin capiō Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂ks Proto-Italic *-āks Latin -āx Latin capāx Proto-Indo-European *-teh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-ts Proto-Indo-European *-teh₂ts Proto-Italic *-tāts Latin -tās Latin capācitāsder. Old French capacitebor. Middle English capacite English capacity From Middle English capacite, from Old French capacite, from Latin capācitās (whence -acity), from capāx (“able to hold much”), from capiō (“to hold, to contain, to take, to understand”).

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

abilitytechniqueaptitudecapacitycraftcapabilitycompetencycompetencecunningdexterity

Antonyms

NYT Puzzle Appearances

Accepted in 1 recorded puzzle:

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