# capita

/ˈkæpɪtə/ (US) · /kˈæpɪtɐ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/capita
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. per person

noun · CEFR B2 · Academic · Formal

used in the phrase 'per capita' to mean for each person.

For teachers: the plural of 'caput' (head), functioning as the object of the preposition 'per' to denote a per-person measurement.

- The country has a very high income per capita because of its small population.
- Economists often prefer to measure a nation's wealth using GDP per capita rather than total GDP to account for population differences.

Usage: Almost always appears in the phrase 'per capita'.

Teaching tip: Learners often try to use 'capita' as a standalone noun. Advise them to treat 'per capita' as a single unit meaning 'for each person'.

## Examples

- The country has a high income per capita.
- Economists use per capita data to compare the living standards of different nations regardless of their total population size.
- While the nation's total wealth is growing, the per capita distribution remains uneven, suggesting that the benefits of economic expansion are not reaching the average citizen.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.