I. kəˈpasəd.ē, -s(ə)tē, -ˈaa-, -i noun
( -es )
Etymology: Middle English capacite, from Middle French capacité, from Latin capacitat-, capacitas, from capac-, capax capacious, capable + -itat-, -itas -ity — more at capacious
1.
a. : the power or ability to hold, receive, or accommodate
had our great palace the capacity to camp this host, we all would sup together — Shakespeare
b. obsolete : an empty space : a hollowed-out area : cavity
c. : a containing space : a measure of content for gas, liquid, or solid : the amount held : the measured ability to contain : volume
a tank with a capacity of 20 gallons
the air capacity of a normal lung
one modern cement elevator has a storage capacity of 114,000 barrels — American Guide Series: Minnesota
d. : the ability to absorb
the capacity of warm air for moisture
e. : the ability to accommodate people : the size or number of accommodations : the condition of maximum service with all accommodations used
an auditorium with a seating capacity of 5000
taxing the capacities of nearby hospitals
the stadium was filled to capacity
f. : the ability to store, process, treat, manufacture, or produce : an instrumentality or facility for production : maximum processing, production, or output
a flood of war orders that strained the capacity of factories long idle — Oscar Handlin
the largest spruce mill in the world, with a capacity of 400,000 board feet every eight hours — American Guide Series: Oregon
steel mills operating at capacity
a generating capacity measured in kilovolt amperes
g. : the ability to yield and to sustain
ranchers considering the carrying capacity of the range lands
h.
(1) : capacitance
(2) : the quantity of electricity that a battery can deliver under specified conditions
i. : the ability of a stream to transport detritus as measured by the quantity carried past a point in a certain time — compare competence
j. : potentiality for production or use : maximum potentiality : facilities for production or service
2. : legal qualification, competency, power, or fitness
3.
a. : ability , caliber , stature
b. : mental power, capability, and acumen blended to enable one to grasp ideas, to analyze and judge, and to cope with problems : maximum potential mental ability
inexpressibly ordinary, yet giving an impression of capacity — G.K.Chesterton
not a philosophical treatise but a work intended for the capacity of the popular mind — S.F.Mason
c. : blended power, strength, and ability
encourage physical activity to the limit of the child's capacity — Morris Fishbein
the capacities of present-day rockets — Time
d. : capability or faculty for executing, considering, appreciating, or experiencing — used with for or an infinitive
with all her capacity for violence, Lola possessed also a strong capacity for affection — Margaret Mead
a capacity for delicate discrimination — J.L.Lowes
the capacity of American idealism to survive a major disillusionment — Archibald MacLeish
4.
a. archaic : a situation enabling or making capable
a ship in a capacity to begin the battle
b. : a position, character, or role either duly assigned or assumed without sanction
in his capacity as legal adviser
served the government in several capacities
•
- at capacity
II. adjective
: attaining to or equaling maximum capacity
a capacity crowd
capacity production of electricity