# capitalism

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈkapɪt(ə)lɪz(ə)m/ · frequency rank #7,425

## Definitions
1. A socio-economic system based on private ownership of resources or capital.
2. An economic system based on private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit.
3. A socio-economic system based on private property rights, including the private ownership of resources or capital, with economic decisions made largely through the operation of a market unregulated by the state.
4. An economic system based on the abstraction of resources into the form of privately owned capital, with economic decisions made largely through the operation of a market unregulated by the state.

## 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].

## Easily confused with
- **capitalist** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/capitalism-vs-capitalist)
- **capitalize** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/capitalism-vs-capitalize)
- **capitalise** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/capitalise-vs-capitalism)

## Common misspellings (15)
`acpitalism`, `caiptalism`, `capiatlism`, `capitailsm`, `capitalims`, `capitalismm`, `capitalissm`, `capitallism`, `capitalsim`, `capitlaism`, `capittalism`, `cappitalism`, `captialism`, `ccapitalism`, `cpaitalism`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/capitalism