What does capot mean?
Capot is a specialized term from the world of card games, most closely associated with piquet, a classic French trick-taking game. In piquet, a capot occurs when one player wins all twelve tricks in a single hand, a rare achievement rewarded with a bonus score. The word can also be used more loosely to describe any thorough, one-sided defeat — a whitewash in which the loser fails to score at all. Capot comes from the French word of the same spelling, ultimately derived from 'capote', meaning a hooded cloak, so the term carries a vivid image: the victor metaphorically covering the vanquished completely, as with a garment. Today capot is encountered mainly in historical or formal accounts of card play, and among enthusiasts of traditional games. For readers interested in gaming terminology, it offers a colorful example of how the language of fashion and the language of competition can become entangled, and it remains the standard term for the ultimate triumph in piquet.
In piquet, the winning of all twelve tricks in a hand by one player; also, the bonus score awarded for this achievement.
"Her capot in the deciding hand left her opponent without a single trick."
Chiefly used in the context of piquet and other trick-taking card games; often found in older literature on card play.
By extension, a total or crushing defeat in any game or contest, especially one in which the losing side scores nothing.
"The match ended as a virtual capot, with the visiting team failing to register a point."
Standard pluralization applies; the plural refers to multiple instances of winning all tricks across several hands or games.
"Between them, the two champions recorded five capots over the course of the tournament."
The word for crushing your opponent at cards literally shares its root with the word 'cloak' — French gamblers were, in effect, draping defeat over their rivals like a coat.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of capot
Capot entered English from French in the seventeenth century, borrowed alongside the growing popularity of piquet among European card players. The French word derives from 'capote', meaning a hooded cloak or long coat, which itself traces back through medieval Latin 'cappa', the same root that gave us 'cape' and 'chapeau'. The connection between a cloak and a card-game rout likely reflects the idea of enveloping or covering one's opponent entirely — taking everything, leaving nothing uncovered.
Related word forms
How capot is actually used
Capot belongs almost entirely to the vocabulary of card playing — above all piquet, where it is a technical scoring term — and appears chiefly in older or more formal writing about games. Outside that context it survives mainly as a figurative expression for a complete whitewash. It should not be confused with 'capote', the cloak or military coat from which it derives.
Easily confused with capot
A capote is a long hooded cloak or military overcoat, whereas a capot is the card-game term for winning all the tricks in a hand.
Kaput means broken or finished (from German), while capot refers to an overwhelming victory in the game of piquet.