capacity

/kəˈpæsədi/

/kəˈpæsɪti/

Other forms: capacities

Capacity describes your ability to do something or the amount something can hold. If your bird cage is at full capacity, you can't stuff one more feathered friend in there without causing birdie claustrophobia.

From the Latin word capacitatem meaning “breadth, capacity,” capacity is a noun that in the simplest sense means "ability" or "capability": the capability of a room to hold a certain number of people, the ability of a law to change crime rates, your ability to pick up foreign languages. You might hear about factories working at "full capacity" — that means at full speed, producing as much as they possibly can.

Definitions of capacity

1. noun

   capability to perform or produce
   “among his gifts is his capacity for true altruism”

   “limited runway capacity”

   “a great capacity for growth”

   antonyms:

   incapacity

   lack of physical or natural qualifications

   type of:

   capability, capableness

   the quality of being capable -- physically or intellectually or legally
2. noun

   a specified function
   “he was employed in the capacity of director”

   “he should be retained in his present capacity at a higher salary”

   type of:

   function, office, part, role

   the actions and activities assigned to or required or expected of a person or group
3. noun

   the amount that can be contained
   “the gas tank has a capacity of 12 gallons”

   synonyms: content

   types:

   vital capacity

   the maximum amount of air that can be exhaled after a maximum inhalation (usually tested with a spirometer); used to determine the condition of lung tissue

   type of:

   volume

   the amount of 3-dimensional space occupied by an object
4. noun

   (computer science) the amount of information (in bytes) that can be stored on a disk drive
   “the capacity of a hard disk drive is usually expressed in megabytes”

   types:

   formatted capacity

   (computer science) the usable capacity of a disk drive; the amount of space that is left after the sector headings and boundary definitions and timing information have been added by formatting the disk

   unformatted capacity

   (computer science) the total number of bytes on a disk including the space that will be required to format it

   type of:

   indefinite quantity

   an estimated quantity
5. noun

   the maximum production possible
   “the plant is working at 80 per cent capacity”

   type of:

   production

   (economics) manufacturing or mining or growing something (usually in large quantities) for sale
6. noun

   tolerance for alcohol
   type of:

   tolerance

   the power or capacity of an organism to tolerate unfavorable environmental conditions
7. noun

   the power to learn or retain knowledge; in law, the ability to understand the facts and significance of your behavior
   synonyms: mental ability

   antonyms:

   incapacity

   lack of intellectual power

   types:

   prescience, prevision

   the power to foresee the future

   type of:

   ability, power

   possession of the qualities (especially mental qualities) required to do something or get something done
8. noun

   an electrical phenomenon whereby an electric charge is stored
   synonyms: capacitance, electrical capacity

   type of:

   electrical phenomenon

   a physical phenomenon involving electricity
9. noun

   the susceptibility of something to a particular treatment
   synonyms: capability

   types:

   resistance

   the capacity of an organism to defend itself against harmful environmental agents

   activity

   (chemistry) the capacity of a substance to take part in a chemical reaction

   type of:

   susceptibility, susceptibleness

   the state of being susceptible; easily affected