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caper

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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Clipping of capriole.

Noun

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caper (plural capers)

  1. A playful leap or jump.
  2. A jump while dancing.
  3. A prank or practical joke.
  4. (usually in the plural) Playful behaviour.
  5. (figuratively) A crime, especially an elaborate heist, or a narrative about such a crime.
    • 2022, Jennifer Egan, “i, the Protagonist”, in The Candy House:
      His caper had failed to find a comic resolution. Instead, there had been a genre switch, and the madcap adventure had turned serious. Or had this bleakness underlain the caper from the start?
    • 2025 April 9, Lucy Knight, “Thomas Pynchon announces Shadow Ticket, his first novel in more than a decade”, in The Guardian‎[1], →ISSN:
      The elusive 87-year-old author’s new book is a noir caper set during the big band era following a detective in search of a cheese heiress[.]
Derived terms
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Translations
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Verb

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caper (third-person singular simple present capers, present participle capering, simple past and past participle capered)

  1. To leap or jump about in a sprightly or playful manner.
    • 1922 February, James Joyce, “[Episode 1]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company, […], →OCLC:
      He capered before them down towards the fortyfoot hole, fluttering his winglike hands, leaping nimbly, Mercury’s hat quivering in the fresh wind that bore back to them his brief birdsweet cries.
  2. To jump as part of a dance.
  3. To engage in playful behaviour.
Derived terms
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Translations
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Etymology 2

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A caper bush.

From Latin capparis, from Ancient Greek κάππαρις (kápparis).

Noun

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caper (plural capers)

  1. The pungent grayish green flower bud of the European and Oriental caper (Capparis spinosa), which is pickled and eaten.
    Synonym: caperberry
  2. A plant of the genus Capparis.
    Synonyms: caper bush, caper tree, caperberry
Derived terms
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Translations
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Further reading

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Etymology 3

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From Dutch kaper.

Noun

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caper (plural capers)

  2. A vessel formerly used by the Dutch; privateer.
Translations
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Etymology 4

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Shortening of capercaillie.

Noun

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caper (plural capers)

  1. (Scotland) The capercaillie.
Translations
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See also

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Anagrams

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French

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Etymology

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From English cap +‎ -er.

Pronunciation

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Verb

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caper

  1. (finance) to cap (set a limit to)
  2. (sports) to cap (award a player a cap for playing for their national team)

Conjugation

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Conjugation of caper (see also Appendix:French verbs)
infinitive simple caper
compound avoir + past participle
present participle or gerund1 simple capant
/ka.pɑ̃/
compound ayant + past participle
past participle capé
/ka.pe/
singular plural
first second third first second third
indicative je (j’) tu il, elle, on nous vous ils, elles
(simple
tenses) 		present cape
/kap/ 		capes
/kap/ 		cape
/kap/ 		capons
/ka.pɔ̃/ 		capez
/ka.pe/ 		capent
/kap/
imperfect capais
/ka.pɛ/ 		capais
/ka.pɛ/ 		capait
/ka.pɛ/ 		capions
/ka.pjɔ̃/ 		capiez
/ka.pje/ 		capaient
/ka.pɛ/
past historic2 capai
/ka.pe/ 		capas
/ka.pa/ 		capa
/ka.pa/ 		capâmes
/ka.pam/ 		capâtes
/ka.pat/ 		capèrent
/ka.pɛʁ/
future caperai
/ka.pʁe/ 		caperas
/ka.pʁa/ 		capera
/ka.pʁa/ 		caperons
/ka.pʁɔ̃/ 		caperez
/ka.pʁe/ 		caperont
/ka.pʁɔ̃/
conditional caperais
/ka.pʁɛ/ 		caperais
/ka.pʁɛ/ 		caperait
/ka.pʁɛ/ 		caperions
/ka.pə.ʁjɔ̃/ 		caperiez
/ka.pə.ʁje/ 		caperaient
/ka.pʁɛ/
(compound
tenses) 		present perfect present indicative of avoir + past participle
pluperfect imperfect indicative of avoir + past participle
past anterior2 past historic of avoir + past participle
future perfect future of avoir + past participle
conditional perfect conditional of avoir + past participle
subjunctive que je (j’) que tu qu’il, qu’elle que nous que vous qu’ils, qu’elles
(simple
tenses) 		present cape
/kap/ 		capes
/kap/ 		cape
/kap/ 		capions
/ka.pjɔ̃/ 		capiez
/ka.pje/ 		capent
/kap/
imperfect2 capasse
/ka.pas/ 		capasses
/ka.pas/ 		capât
/ka.pa/ 		capassions
/ka.pa.sjɔ̃/ 		capassiez
/ka.pa.sje/ 		capassent
/ka.pas/
(compound
tenses) 		past present subjunctive of avoir + past participle
pluperfect2 imperfect subjunctive of avoir + past participle
imperative – tu – nous vous –
simple — cape
/kap/ 		— capons
/ka.pɔ̃/ 		capez
/ka.pe/ 		—
compound — simple imperative of avoir + past participle — simple imperative of avoir + past participle simple imperative of avoir + past participle —
1 The French gerund is usable only with the preposition en.
2 In less formal writing or speech, these tenses may be found to have been replaced in the following way:
past historic → present perfect
past anterior → pluperfect
imperfect subjunctive → present subjunctive
pluperfect subjunctive → past subjunctive

(Christopher Kendris [1995], Master the Basics: French, pp. 77, 78, 79, 81).

Indonesian

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Etymology

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Blend of cari (“seeking”) +‎ perhatian (“attention”), from calque of English attention-seeking.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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capêr (comparative lebih caper, superlative paling caper)

  1. (colloquial) attention-seeking

Further reading

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Latin

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Etymology

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    caper

    From Proto-Italic *kapros, from Proto-Indo-European *kápros (“buck, he-goat”). Cognate with Ancient Greek κάπρος (kápros, “boar”), Proto-Germanic *hafraz (“he-goat”), and Proto-Iranian *káfrah (“young goat, kid”).

    Pronunciation

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    Noun

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    caper m (genitive caprī, feminine capra); second declension

    1. he-goat (a male goat, a billy goat)
      Synonyms: buccus, hircus

    Declension

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    Second-declension noun (nominative singular in -er).

    singular plural
    nominative caper caprī
    genitive caprī caprōrum
    dative caprō caprīs
    accusative caprum caprōs
    ablative caprō caprīs
    vocative caper caprī

    Coordinate terms

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    Descendants

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    • Italo-Romance:
      • Italian: capro, ⇒ caprone
    • Gallo-Romance:
    • Ibero-Romance:
    • Borrowings:
      • → Scottish Gaelic: cabar

    References

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    • “caper”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
    • “caper”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
    • “caper”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
    • “caper”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper’s Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
    • “caper”, in William Smith, editor (1848), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, London: John Murray

    Middle French

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    Etymology

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    Borrowed from Latin capere.

    Verb

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    caper

    1. to seize

    Conjugation

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    • Middle French conjugation varies from one text to another. Hence, the following conjugation should be considered as typical, not as exhaustive.
    Conjugation of caper
    infinitive simple caper
    compound avoir + past participle
    present participle1 or gerund2 simple capant
    compound present participle or gerund of avoir + past participle
    past participle capé
    singular plural
    first second third first second third
    indicative ie (i’) tu il, elle nous vous ilz, elles
    (simple
    tenses)         		present cape capes cape capons capez capent
    imperfect capois, capoys capois, capoys capoit, capoyt capions, capyons capiez, capyez capoient, capoyent
    past historic capa capas capa capasmes capastes caperent
    future caperai, caperay caperas capera caperons caperez caperont
    conditional caperois, caperoys caperois, caperoys caperoit, caperoyt caperions, caperyons caperiez, caperyez caperoient, caperoyent
    (compound
    tenses)         		present perfect present indicative of avoir + past participle
    pluperfect imperfect indicative of avoir + past participle
    past anterior past historic of avoir + past participle
    future perfect future of avoir + past participle
    conditional perfect conditional of avoir + past participle
    subjunctive que ie (i’) que tu qu’il, qu’elle que nous que vous qu’ilz, qu’elles
    (simple
    tenses)         		present cape capes cape capons capez capent
    imperfect capasse capasses capast capassions capassiez capassent
    (compound
    tenses)         		past present subjunctive of avoir + past participle
    pluperfect imperfect subjunctive of avoir + past participle
    imperative – tu – nous vous –
    simple — cape — capons capez —
    compound — simple imperative of avoir + past participle — simple imperative of avoir + past participle simple imperative of avoir + past participle —
    1 The present participle was variable in gender and number until the 17th century (Anne Sancier-Château [1995], Une esthétique nouvelle: Honoré d'Urfé, correcteur de l'Astrée, p. 179). The French Academy would eventually declare it not to be declined in 1679.
    2 The gerund was held to be invariable by grammarians of the early 17th century, and was usable with preposition en, as in Modern French, although the preposition was not mandatory (Anne Sancier-Château [1995], op. cit., p. 180).

    Norwegian Bokmål

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    Noun

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    caper m

    1. indefinite plural of cape

    Romanian

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    Etymology

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    Borrowed from Italian cappero.

    Noun

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    caper m (plural caperi)

    1. caper (a plant)

    Declension

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    singular plural
    indefinite definite indefinite definite
    nominative-accusative caper caperul caperi caperii
    genitive-dative caper caperului caperi caperilor
    vocative caperule caperilor

    Swedish

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    Noun

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    caper

    1. indefinite plural of cape
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