caitiff C2+ Topic:People & Society US /ˈkeɪtɪf/ UK /ˈkeɪtɪf/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun a cowardly and despicable person; base and craven The poet branded the traitor a craven caitiff. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · a cowardly and despicable... cowardwretchvillaincravenscoundrelknavedastard ↔ Opposites herochampiongallant Word family Related forms captive Etymology AI details From Old North French caitif ('captive, wretched'), from Latin captivus ('captive, prisoner'), from capere ('to take, seize'). A doublet of captive. caitif Old French captivus Latin capere Latin View etymology graph -> Topics People & Society External links Google Images Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary # caitiff **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈkeɪtɪf/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈkeɪtɪf/ ## Meanings 1. a cowardly and despicable person; base and craven ## Examples - The poet branded the traitor a craven caitiff. ## Synonyms - coward - wretch - villain - craven - scoundrel - knave - dastard ## Antonyms - hero - champion - gallant ## Related Forms - captive ## Roots and Affixes - Root: caitif - Root: captivus - Root: capere ## Etymology From Old North French caitif ('captive, wretched'), from Latin captivus ('captive, prisoner'), from capere ('to take, seize'). A doublet of captive. ## AI Etymology Caitiff is from Old North French caitif ('captive, wretched'), from Latin captivus ('captive, prisoner'), from capere ('to take, seize'). A doublet of captive. Important recorded forms include caitif (Old French), captivus (Latin), and capere (Latin). The current sense covers a cowardly and despicable person; base and craven. The wider family includes related words such as captive. ## Topics - People & Society markdown