English Lexicon

Capon

/ˈkeɪ.pɒn/
nounverbCEFR C2 (Proficient)Top #28400 frequency
Full Thesaurus

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As noun
  1. 1

    A male chicken that has been castrated at an early age in order to increase its size and improve the flavor and tenderness of its meat.

    "The traditional holiday dinner featured a roasted capon stuffed with herbs and chestnuts."
As verb
  1. 1

    To castrate a young male rooster.

    "Farmers traditionally caponized young roosters to produce heavier and more docile birds for the market."

Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum

Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

Derived from Old English 'capun', stemming from Latin 'capō', which is connected to the Greek verb 'koptein' meaning to cut. The term entered Middle English via Old French, historically referring to a cockerel castrated to improve the quality of its flesh for eating.

Quick Vocabulary Retention Check

Which of the following is the closest synonym for "Capon"?

Thesaurus & Synonyms Graph

Explore Nuanced Synonyms for "Capon"

Discover exact matches, context-specific alternatives, and antonyms with intensity ratings in the VocabDictionary Thesaurus.

View "Capon" Synonym Map