capital

Where does the word "capital" come from? It comes from Latin capitalis, and was adopted directly into English (1200s).

Capital’s story begins in Latin: capitalis meant “relating to the head, chief.” Relating to the head, from caput (head), since the head was seen as the chief or leading part. It reached English by 1200s as capital. Broadened to mean chief in importance, later wealth or a governing city. Today, capital means the most important city of a region, or accumulated wealth used to generate more.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient capitalis "relating to the head, chief", relating to the head, from caput (head), since the head was seen as the chief or leading part.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1200s capital "chief in importance, or accumulated wealth", broadened to mean chief in importance, later wealth or a governing city.