Decapitalization

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The process of removing capital letters from text; the reduction or elimination of capital assets or resources; lowering the capital investment or financial base of an entity
2. Changing letters from uppercase to lowercase in writing; diminishing the amount of capital or wealth; decreasing financial capital used in business or investment
3. Converting uppercase characters into lowercase in typography; the act of reducing accumulated capital or funds; cutting down the capital stock or monetary foundation of an organization

Etymology: "Decapitalization" is simply "de-" attached to "capitalization," with the "de-" prefix (from Latin, meaning "down" or "away," and often used to reverse or remove something) producing the sense of taking capitals away. The word is a plain English formation, so its interest lies less in a dramatic story than in how one prefix serves two quite different trades. In typography, it names the reverse of setting text in capitals: turning uppercase letters into lowercase. In finance and business, it describes cutting down the capital held by an organization, reducing the funds or monetary foundation on which it stands. The same prefix and base thus serve a printer's composing room and a company's balance sheet, with "capitalization" carrying its typographic sense of capital letters and its financial sense of capital funds.

Synonyms: lowercasing, decapitalisation

Antonyms: capitalization, capitalisation