capitalist

American  

[kap-i-tl-ist] / ˈkæp ɪ tl ɪst /

noun

1. a person who has capital, especially extensive capital, invested in business enterprises.

2. an advocate of capitalism.

3. a very wealthy person.

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capitalist British  

/ ˈkæpɪtəlɪst /

noun

1. a person who owns capital, esp capital invested in a business

2. politics a supporter of capitalism

3. informal a rich person

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adjective

1. of or relating to capital, capitalists, or capitalism

Other Word Forms

• anticapitalist noun
• capitalistic adjective
• noncapitalist noun
• precapitalist noun
• procapitalist noun

Etymology

Origin of capitalist

First recorded in 1785–95; capital ¹ + -ist

Example Sentences

Venture capitalist Bill Gurley likens today’s token economy to the dot-com era of selling dollars for 85 cents.

From The Wall Street Journal

He claimed in online interviews that he had interests from venture capitalists and was looking to expand.

From Los Angeles Times

“It’s totally unprecedented for one company to be so active across the board,” said Paul Kedrosky, a venture capitalist and fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Initiative on the Digital Economy.

From The Wall Street Journal

Venture capitalist David Sacks’ company, Craft Ventures, also announced in December that it has opened a new satellite office in Austin.

From MarketWatch

Venture capitalist Tomasz Tunguz uses them to create charts, blog posts and presentations.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• banker
• entrepreneur
• financier