capture the flag

noun

: a game in which players on each of two teams seek to capture the other team's flag and return it to their side without being captured and imprisoned

Examples of capture the flag in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web One Thing at a Time, hip-hop couldn’t capture the flag until July, when Lil Uzi Vert’s Pink Tape finally ended the shutout. Trevor Anderson, Billboard, 3 Sep. 2019 Stratego Available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Walmart, and Target Stratego is like a Napoleonic version of capture the flag. Julianne Hilmes Bartlett, Better Homes & Gardens, 16 Mar. 2022 Color wars, capture the flag, swimming and more, sleep-away camps help Jewish youths establish strong friendships, ethics and pride, all of which contribute to a lasting sense of community. Rachel Wisniewski, Washington Post, 17 Aug. 2023 Laser tag, capture the flag, arcade, basketball, DDR, and go-karts. Erica Gonzales, ELLE, 23 July 2023 Why did the Republicans fail to capture the flag? Michelle Ruiz, Vogue, 9 Nov. 2022 Time will tell if the GOP can capture the flag. Charlie Dent, CNN, 14 Nov. 2021 Camps for kids ages 4 and up lean into nostalgic fun — fairy housebuilding and talent shows for little ones and games like capture the flag for tweens. Karen Cicero, Good Housekeeping, 1 Feb. 2023 On the surface the game seems like chess: Two players line up rows of attackers across from each other on a square board and attempt to capture the flag of their opponent—the one move that will end the game. Andrew Moseman, Discover Magazine, 1 Mar. 2012

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'capture the flag.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1925, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of capture the flag was circa 1925

Dictionary Entries Near capture the flag

Cite this Entry

“Capture the flag.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capture%20the%20flag. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

capture the flag

noun
: a game in which players on each of two teams seek to capture the other team's flag and return it to their side without being captured and imprisoned
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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