Meanings
plural captaincies
- countableuncountableThe jurisdiction of a captain.
- countablehistoricaluncountableAn administrative division of the former Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires.
He obtains a captaincy in the Catalonian army
1828, Juan van Halen, Narrative of Don Juan Van Halen's Imprisonment in the Dungeons of the Inquistion at Madrid1 more example
The territory bathed by this river belongs to the captaincy of Benito Maciel the father.
1859, Garcilaso de la Vega, Christóbel de Acuña, Clements Robert Markham, Expeditions Into the Valley of the AmazonsSynonyms: capitania
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe rank or status of a captain.
nounAn administrative division of the former Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires.
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
From captain + -cy. Piecewise doublet of chieftaincy.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans kapteinskap
- kapteinskaprank or status of a captain
Bulgarian капитанство, капитанство
- капитанство (kapitanstvo)rank or status of a captain
- капитанство (kapitanstvo)administrative division
Catalan capitania, capitania
- capitaniarank or status of a captain
- capitaniaadministrative division
French capitanat
- capitanatrank or status of a captain
Portuguese capitania
- capitaniaadministrative division
Spanish capitanía
- capitaníarank or status of a captain
Swahili ukapteni
- ukaptenirank or status of a captain
Cite this entry
captaincy. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/captaincy
“captaincy.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/captaincy. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “captaincy,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/captaincy.
Source: captaincy on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.