1
as in whim
a sudden impulsive and apparently unmotivated idea or action
an out-of-character caprice led him to take the day off from work and go to the beach
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in impulsiveness
an inclination to sudden illogical changes of mind, ideas, or actions
his knack for picking racetrack winners appears to owe as much to caprice as it does to a canny assessment of horseflesh
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of caprice
Fear of political caprice masquerading as strategy, of a trade war metastasizing into financial contagion, and of a world where traditional safe havens—currencies, institutions, alliances—no longer offer much safety at all.
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Mohammed Soliman, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Apr. 2025
An e-mail publication was invulnerable to the caprices of social-media platforms and their algorithms.
—Nathan Heller, The New Yorker, 15 Mar. 2025
But Cass is not the man to beat his head in bitterness over female caprice.
—Frank C. Hibben, Outdoor Life, 27 Feb. 2025
Two questions arise: If self-driving cars can’t handle such examples of human caprice, how will people feel about sharing space with these new aliens?
—Rodney Brooks, IEEE Spectrum, 27 July 2017
See All Example Sentences for caprice
Recent Examples of Synonyms for caprice
Noun
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The Treasury market tends to move with the whims of Wall Street and not in lockstep with Fed policy.—
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Hidden away from the rest of the first floor action, the primary bedroom was a place for Cece to indulge her most personal decorating whims.—
Noun
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Lofland says that while Cooper’s decisions might frustrate the audience, his impulsiveness is an important part of what makes the character tick.—
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The novel Elphie follows the witch from infancy, shaped by her mother Melena’s impulsiveness and her father Frex’s stern piety, and navigating the jealousies that arise with the arrivals of her siblings, Nessarose and Shell.—
Noun
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The capriciousness of fate was not lost on Karstens and many of the survivors.—
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The president’s bombast and capriciousness have led many European countries to increase their defense spending—a positive outcome, to be sure, and not inherently at odds with the notion of a unified, geopolitical West.—
Cite this Entry
“Caprice.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/caprice. Accessed 19 Jan. 2026.
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