capit-, capt-, cap-, cep-, ceps-, chapt-, chef, cip-

(Latin: head; leader, chief, or first)

It may be surprising to see that a "captain" and a "chef" both belong to the same word family; however, a captain is, of course, the "head of a company of military soldiers", and a "chef is the captain of a group of cooks".

A chef, especially to those who love good food, is not a lowly official; and when it is remembered that the old saying that "an army travels on its stomach", a chef is every bit as important as a captain.

When the French borrowed words from Latin, they frequently used soft sounds. These French words, with their softer sounds, then made their way into the English language. At the same time, English borrowed words directly from Latin. So it is that in English we often have two words which share the same root, but which have different, though related, forms and meanings.

—Compiled from information located in
Words Come in Families by Edward Horowitz, Ph.D.;
Hart Publishing Company, Inc.; New York; 1977; pages 39-42.

Don't confuse the words in this capit-, capt- unit with those in the cap-, cip-, "catch, seize" unit.

kerchief (s) (noun), kerchiefs (pl)
1. A square scarf that is folded into a triangle and worn over the head or around the neck: "Mary's long golden hair hung down below her kerchief."
2. Etymology: from Anglo-French courchief, from Old French couvrechief; literally, "cover head"; from couvrir, "to cover" + chief, "head".
live capture (s) (noun), live captures (pl)
The act or method of gathering biometric data from an individual while the person is physically present.

The term is used in conjunction with security systems that identify people based on a previous recording of one or more of their body characteristics.

Live capture is used in some automatic teller machines (ATMs) to ensure that the person making the transaction is the individual to whom the magnetic ATM card belongs. One approach is iris scanning.

The subject must look in the general direction of a camera and the eyes must be uncovered. Otherwise, the transaction will not be completed. Another approach to live capture is facial recognition, which has been suggested as a way to scan crowds for suspected terrorists.

An advantage of live capture is that relevant action can be taken at the moment the data is gathered; for example, the police can be summoned if an intruder on a property is identified as a known criminal suspect by facial recognition equipment.

In contrast, so-called dead or passive capture is used primarily to gather evidence or make comparisons of samples when the subject is not physically present.

medioccipital, midoccipital (adjective)
A reference to the central portion or point of the occiput (the back part of the skull).
mischief (s) (noun), mischiefs (pl)
1. Reckless, or malicious, behavior that causes discomfort or annoyance in others.
2. The quality, or nature, of being harmful or evil.
3. Behavior; especially, by children, that is undesirable or troublesome without being malicious; such as, a prank or a playful annoyance: "On Halloween, it is always wise to look out for mischiefs who go around playing tricks on others."
mischievous (adjective), more mischievous, most mischievous
1. A reference to someone behaving, or likely to behave, in a naughty or troublesome way, but in fun and not meaning serious harm: Tom's little girl was playing with the mischievous puppy.
2. Relating to a person expressing his or her intention or inclination to have fun by teasing, playing tricks, or causing trouble; troublesome; irritating: By the mischievous tone of her voice, Jane's mother knew she was up to something irksome and bothersome.
3. At times, characteristic of an act or suggestion which causes or is meant to cause serious trouble, damage, or pain: Someone was telling mischievous lies about Mary's recent job promotion.
4. Etymology: from French meschef, from the verb meschever, "meet with misfortune"; from Latin caput, "head" and meant "come to a head" and then the modern sense of "naughtiness".
A reference to annoying someone with playful tricks.
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Relating to being playfully annoying.
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Descriptive of doing vexing tricks on other people.
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mischievously (adverb)
1. In a disobedient or naughty way: The children smiled mischievously.
2. Behaving in a way, or describing behavior, which is slightly bad but is not intended to cause serious harm or damage: The puppy was mischievously shaking Jake's slipper.
3. A reference to behavior or words that are intended to cause harm or trouble: Henry realized that someone was mischievously passing around harmful gossip.
non-capitulation, non capitulation, noncapitulation (s) (noun); non-capitulations, non capitulations, noncapitulations (pl)
1. The refusal to end resistance or to give up or to comply with demands.
2. Not surrendering nor giving up.
3. Refusing to enumerate the main parts of a subject or not providing a summary.
occipital (adjective)
A reference to the back of the skull or the head: "That which is located near the occipital bone that forms the back and rear bottom of the skull."
orographic precipitation (s) (noun), orographic precipitations (pl)
Precipitation which results from the lifting of moist air over a topographic barrier; such as, a mountain range: "The orographic precipitation may take place at some distance upwind or a short distance downwind, as well as on the barrier itself."

per capita (adverb)
A reference to each person (by the head): "The city has budgeted a financial amount for pupils per capita annually for educational expenses."
per capita (adjective)
By the head; that which is measured equally by [each] head (person) of the population: "The per capita income is not the same for each city in the state."

piscicapturist (s) (noun), piscicapturists (pl)
A fisherman or a catcher of fish: "There are many men in the world who are piscicapturists as a profession or just for the sport of doing it."
precipice (s) (noun), precipices (pl)
1. An overhanging or extremely steep mass of rock, such as a crag or the face of a cliff: The hikers drew back carefully from the precipice, moving towards safety.
2. The brink of a dangerous or disastrous situation: The school team was on the precipice of defeat.

Before he found out the results of his final examinations, Samuel felt as though he were at the edge of a precipice.
3. Etymology: from "fall to great depth"; from French précipice, from Latin præcipitium, "a steep place"; literally, "a fall" or "leap"; from præceps, præcipitis, "steep, headlong, headfirst"; from prae-, "in front" + caput, "head".

The meaning of "steep face of rock" is recorded from 1632.

precipitable (adjective), more precipitable, most precipitable
Descriptive of that which has been separated and has fallen to the bottom of a solution in a container: The precipitable substances in the test tube sank slowly to the lowest end of the glass cylinder.
precipitance (s) (noun), precipitances (pl)
An action or thought marked by impulsiveness or rash haste: Quite often there is a precipitance, or abruptness, among young people.

The precipitance and quickness of the faculty members in submitting their resignations took the Board of Directors by surprise.