Definition of “captain” - English Dictionary

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“captain” in English

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captainnoun

uk ​ /ˈkæp.tɪn/ us ​ /ˈkæp.tən/

B1 [ C ] the leader of a sports team:

It's unusual to have a goalkeeper as (the) captain of a football team.

B2 [ C ] the person in charge of a ship or an aircraft:

This is your captain speaking. We expect to be landing at Osaka Kansai airport in an hour's time.

› [ C ] also Captain an officer's rank in the British army or navy, or in the US air force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, or the US police and fire departments:

The captain gave him his orders.
Captain Lane/Alex Lane
[ as form of address ] Yes, Captain.

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Thesaurus: synonyms and related words

captainverb [ T ]

uk ​ /ˈkæp.tɪn/ us ​ /ˈkæp.tən/
captaincy
noun [ C or U ] uk ​ /ˈkæp.tɪn.si/ us ​ /ˈkæp.tən.si/

(Definition of “captain” from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

“captain” in American English

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captainnoun [ C ]

us ​ /ˈkæp·tən/

› a naval officer of high rank, above a commander, or a military officer of middle rank, above a lieutenant

› A captain is the person in charge of a ship or aircraft.

› A captain is also an officer in a police or fire department.

› A captain is also the leader of a sports team.

captain
verb [ T ] us ​ /ˈkæp·tən/

›

She captains the women’s rowing team.

(Definition of “captain” from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

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