1
as in supervising
to be in charge of
if you do well on this, you'll be asked to captain the next mission
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in governing
to exercise authority or power over
captained the project for a few days while the boss was out of town
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in leading
to serve as leader of
you did a good job of captaining the team
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of captaining
Blorian is just as physically imposing as Mosquera and comes off captaining Hapoel Be’er Sheva to a cup and league double.
—
Daniel Sperry,
Kansas City Star,
2 July 2026
And so, without Haaland in front to bash the ball into the goal, or Martin Ødegaard, fresh from captaining his club team, Arsenal, to a Premier League title, taking on France would have to be a full-team effort.
—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
27 June 2026
The future workforce is already here—sitting in classrooms, leading student organizations, captaining athletic teams and volunteering in communities.
—
Dr. Milpha Blamo,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2026
Hayes has played under the United States Tennis Association for the past 40 years, captaining 75 teams over the last three decades.
—
Panashe Matemba-Mutasa,
Mercury News,
27 May 2026
Rolling often waves to his regulars from the wheelhouse, and recently passengers have started recognizing him, too — and not just for captaining their commute.
—
Julia Press,
Bloomberg,
22 May 2026
Ronaldo later returned to the team on February 14, captaining and scoring in a 2-0 win over Al Fateh.
—
Jordan Campbell,
New York Times,
21 May 2026
That changed this year, though, as Ledbetter is captaining a four-member charity team, the institute’s first ever crew of marathon runners.
—
Lance Reynolds,
Boston Herald,
16 Apr. 2026
Meanwhile, the man captaining the boat that gets her into the Amazon is possessed by thoughts of a lost love, a story even a head-in-her-hands Tereza is exhausted by.
—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
3 Apr. 2026
Daniel Sperry,
Kansas City Star,
2 July 2026
And so, without Haaland in front to bash the ball into the goal, or Martin Ødegaard, fresh from captaining his club team, Arsenal, to a Premier League title, taking on France would have to be a full-team effort.
—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
27 June 2026
The future workforce is already here—sitting in classrooms, leading student organizations, captaining athletic teams and volunteering in communities.
—
Dr. Milpha Blamo,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2026
Hayes has played under the United States Tennis Association for the past 40 years, captaining 75 teams over the last three decades.
—
Panashe Matemba-Mutasa,
Mercury News,
27 May 2026
Rolling often waves to his regulars from the wheelhouse, and recently passengers have started recognizing him, too — and not just for captaining their commute.
—
Julia Press,
Bloomberg,
22 May 2026
Ronaldo later returned to the team on February 14, captaining and scoring in a 2-0 win over Al Fateh.
—
Jordan Campbell,
New York Times,
21 May 2026
That changed this year, though, as Ledbetter is captaining a four-member charity team, the institute’s first ever crew of marathon runners.
—
Lance Reynolds,
Boston Herald,
16 Apr. 2026
Meanwhile, the man captaining the boat that gets her into the Amazon is possessed by thoughts of a lost love, a story even a head-in-her-hands Tereza is exhausted by.
—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
3 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for captaining
Verb
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Nadella is also supervising major changes in units such as Xbox and has become more hands-on with product development.
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Army investigations have repeatedly pointed to the same factors contributing to fatal training incidents including sleep deprivation, inadequate training and inexperienced leaders supervising high-risk exercises.
Verb
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Still, with some four months until the election, polling shows Eisenkot is far from securing a decisive victory or having an easy path to a governing coalition.
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Rather, verifying, governing and trusting the code that AI produces is the true challenge.
Verb
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Yet despite those struggles, South Africa, one of Africa’s leading industrial economies, remains a destination for migrants willing to take low-paying jobs in domestic work, security and agriculture.
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As businesses in Hollywood and other sectors face more consolidation and competition, executives are getting richly compensated more for their role in leading companies through challenging times.
Verb
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From overseeing the Dodgers during one of the franchise's most influential eras to remaining involved in ownership and player development across the sport, the family's impact extended well beyond the major leagues.
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The judge overseeing the wrongful death civil case that John O'Keefe's family filed against Karen Read admonished more than a dozen lawyers involved in the case on Wednesday.
Verb
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Lower courts dismissed the challenge, ruling the parents hadn’t shown they have been harmed by the laws or are likely to be.
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The Supreme Court also decided that case Monday, ruling members of other independent boards can be fired at will by the president and overturning the 90-year precedent that said otherwise.
Verb
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As of Saturday evening, Jones maintained a commanding lead over his nearest rival, fellow councilman Izzy Patoka.
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Though the Associated Press had yet to project a winner, Jawando has taken a commanding lead in the vote count.
Verb
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The way Luke is handling the love triangle with Joy and Gen makes Nathan and Joe look like sage old men.
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Be careful when handling debris that may have blown into your yard.
Verb
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Portugal’s biggest warning sign came in their final clash, with Colombia managing 24 shots on goal — their most recorded in a World Cup game.
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There’s less enthusiasm for FIFA’s role in managing the World Cup.
Cite this Entry
“Captaining.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/captaining. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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