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capitalist

/ˈkæpədlɪst/
/ˈkæpɪtəlɪst/
IPA guide

Other forms: capitalists

Someone who hopes to profit by investing money or financing business ventures is a capitalist. A nation's economy is described as capitalist if it's based on private ownership and profit.

The word capitalist appeared in 1791, taken from the French word capitaliste. A capitalist is someone who believes in the economic philosophy of Capitalism, a system of privately-owned, for-profit businesses. A capitalist might believe in free enterprise and the individual’s ability to gain wealth through intelligence and hard work. Capitalist can also be used to describe a self-interested, every-man-for-himself approach to the world.

Definitions of capitalist
  1. adjective
    of or relating to capitalism or capitalists
    “a capitalist nation”
    synonyms: capitalistic
  2. adjective
    favoring or practicing capitalism
    synonyms: capitalistic
    bourgeois
    (according to Marxist thought) being of the property-owning class and exploitive of the working class
    competitive, free-enterprise, private-enterprise
    subscribing to capitalistic competition
    individualistic, laissez-faire
    with minimally restricted freedom in commerce
  3. noun
    a conservative advocate of capitalism
    see moresee less
    type of:
    conservative, conservativist
    a person who is reluctant to accept changes and new ideas
  4. noun
    a person who invests capital in a business (especially a large business)
    see moresee less
    examples:
    John Jacob Astor
    United States capitalist (born in Germany) who made a fortune in fur trading (1763-1848)
    types:
    bourgeois, businessperson
    a capitalist who engages in industrial commercial enterprise
    financier, moneyman
    a person skilled in large scale financial transactions
    bearer, holder
    the person who is in possession of a check or note or bond or document of title that is endorsed to him or to whoever holds it
    investor
    someone who commits capital in order to gain financial returns
    materialist
    someone with great regard for material possessions
    moneymaker
    someone who is successful in accumulating wealth
    profiteer
    someone who makes excessive profit (especially on goods in short supply)
    contrarian
    an investor who deliberately decides to go against the prevailing wisdom of other investors
    accountant, comptroller, controller
    someone who maintains and audits business accounts
    account executive, account representative, customer's broker, customer's man, registered representative
    someone in charge of a client's account for an advertising agency or brokerage or other service business
    agent, broker, factor
    a businessperson who buys or sells for another in exchange for a commission
    banker
    a financier who owns or is an executive in a bank
    bear
    an investor with a pessimistic market outlook; an investor who expects prices to fall and so sells now in order to buy later at a lower price
    bondholder
    a holder of bonds issued by a government or corporation
    bull
    an investor with an optimistic market outlook; an investor who expects prices to rise and so buys now for resale later
    businessman, man of affairs
    a person engaged in commercial or industrial business (especially an owner or executive)
    businesswoman
    a female businessperson
    caller
    an investor who buys a call option
    city man
    a financier who works in one of the banks in the City of London
    depositor
    a person who has deposited money in a bank or similar institution
    enterpriser, entrepreneur
    someone who organizes a business venture and assumes the risk for it
    exporter
    a businessperson who transports goods abroad (for sale)
    importer
    someone whose business involves importing goods from outside (especially from a foreign country)
    lender, loaner
    someone who lends money or gives credit in business matters
    merchandiser, merchant
    a businessperson engaged in retail trade
    moneygrubber
    someone whose main interest in life is moneymaking
    dealer, principal
    the major party to a financial transaction at a stock exchange; buys and sells for his own account
    rentier
    someone whose income is from property rents or bond interest and other investments
    shipper
    someone who ships goods
    shareholder, shareowner, stockholder
    someone who holds shares of stock in a corporation
    provider, supplier
    someone whose business is to supply a particular service or commodity
    type of:
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DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘capitalist'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
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