per capita

adverb or adjective

per cap·​i·​ta (ˌ)pər-ˈka-pə-tə 

1

: per unit of population : by or for each person

the highest income per capita of any state in the union

2

: equally to each individual

Synonyms

• all
• apiece
• each
• per

Examples of per capita in a Sentence

we expect the students to receive less funding per capita this year due to a marked increase in the school-age population

Recent Examples on the Web

From there, our team ranked each state by the rate of each location per capita and ranked the google trends data, which is already normalized for population. —Grace Manthey, CBS News, 31 Oct. 2024

Within two decades of TVA’s existence, per capita income had risen to about 60% of the national average. —Jared Sullivan, TIME, 30 Oct. 2024

In Pennsylvania, the state spends $112 per capita, fully 28 times that of Ohio. —Sam Allard, Axios, 30 Oct. 2024

The Myrtle Beach metro area has the second-highest concentration of public golf per capita in the nation, according to the National Golf Foundation, with more than 800 holes of public golf in total. —Erik Matuszewski, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Medieval Latin, by heads

First Known Use

1682, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Kids Definition

per capita

adverb or adjective

per cap·​i·​ta (ˌ)pər-ˈkap-ət-ə 

: by or for each person

per capita income

Legal Definition

per capita

adverb or adjective

per cap·​i·​ta pər-ˈka-pə-tə 

1

: equally to each individual

all property to pass to the descendants per capita

—used of a method of distributing an especially intestate estate compare per stirpes

Note: Per capita distribution of an estate provides each descendant with an equal share of the estate's assets regardless of the degree of his or her kinship. Children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc., all receive equal shares.

2

: per unit of population : by or for each individual

a high per capita tax burden

Etymology

Medieval Latin, by heads