What does capote mean?
A capote is a long, loose cloak or overcoat, typically equipped with a hood, worn for protection against cold and wet weather. Historically it was standard winter dress for soldiers in several European armies, for sailors, and most famously for the French Canadian voyageurs and fur traders of North America, whose woollen capotes became an iconic garment of the trade routes. A secondary, now largely obsolete sense denotes a soft bonnet or hood, particularly one worn by babies. The word carries strong historical and period connotations: modern readers encounter it chiefly in accounts of military campaigns, frontier life, and historical novels rather than in everyday speech. Borrowed from French, it ultimately descends from the Latin word for a cloak, making it a linguistic cousin of the humble 'cape' and 'cap'. For readers of history and historical fiction, recognising the term adds texture to descriptions of winter camps, marches, and river journeys.
A long, usually hooded cloak or heavy overcoat.
"He buttoned his army-issue capote to the chin as the sleet began to fall."
Most often encountered in historical or military contexts.
A soft bonnet or hood, especially one worn by a baby.
"The layette included a lace-trimmed capote for the christening."
This sense is now rare and largely historical.
Standard English plural, used when referring to more than one cloak or bonnet.
"The quartermaster issued thick grey capotes to every man in the column."
The fur traders of Canada braved sub-zero winters in little more than a blanket-style coat called a capote — and its name traces straight back to the Latin word for a cloak.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of capote
English took 'capote' directly from French, where it denoted a hooded cloak, during the seventeenth century as contact between Britain and France in military and colonial contexts intensified. The French word itself derives from the Latin 'cappa', a term meaning a cloak or hooded garment, which also gave English 'cape' and 'chapeau'-related forms. Its close cousin 'capuchin', via Italian, reflects the same Latin root through the hooded habit of the Capuchin friars. In North America the word became firmly attached to the belted woollen coats worn by French Canadian voyageurs.
How capote is actually used
The word has a distinctly historical flavour today: it appears most often in writing about military uniforms of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, about French Canadian voyageurs, or in period fiction. The infant-bonnet sense is now rare and largely confined to older texts. The plural is usually 'capotes'.
Easily confused with capote
The common noun 'capote' means a hooded cloak or baby's bonnet, while 'Capote' is best known as the surname of American writer Truman Capote.