Meaning
1. A part of dress made to cover the head.
2. The ensign of a cardinalate.
3. The top, or the uppermost; the highest.
Thou art the cap of fools.
4. A vessel in form of a cap.
5. An act of respect, made by uncovering the head.
Cap of cannon, a piece of lead laid over the vent to keep the priming dry; now called an apron.
Cap of maintenance, an ornament of state, carried before the Kings of England at the coronation. It is also carried before the mayors of some cities.
In ship-building, a cap is a thick strong block of wood, used to confine two masts together, when one is erected at the head of another.
CAP, VT
1. To cover the top, or end; to spread over; as, a bone is capped at the joint with a cartilaginous substance.
The cloud-capped towers.
2. To deprive of the cap, or take off a cap.
To cap verses, is to name alternately verses beginning with a particular letter; to name in opposition or emulation; to name alternately in contest.
CAP, v.i. To uncover the head in reverence or civility.
Cap-a-pie, From head to foot; all over; as, armed cap-a-pie.
Cap-paper, n. A coarse paper, so called from being used to make caps to hold commodities.
Cap-sheaf, n. The top sheaf of a stack of grain; the crowner.
