capeesh

Capeesh is a slang interjection that asks a person if they understand, as in I need you to drop this off at your house and come right back. Capeesh?

Capeesh can also be used as an answer to signal that you understand what someone said, as in Capeesh! I’ll come right back.

Capeesh is most often used in fiction. When it’s used to ask someone if they understand, capeesh indicates that the person asking has some authority to make life unpleasant for their listener.

Capeesh can also be spelled as capiche or capisce. It is used by itself or to end a sentence, as in You aren’t going to stay home all day and play video games, capeesh?

Example: You’ve got until Friday to return my money, capeesh?

It’s not certain when the first records of capeesh come from. It comes from the Italian capisce, a form of the verb capire, meaning “to understand.” The first records of capisce in English come from around 1904.

Likely because of its origin, capeesh and its other spellings are often used in pop culture depictions of Italian Americans or the American Mafia. Today, capeesh is used by all kinds of people but will still likely be most familiar to fans of gangster films and similar media.

What are some other forms related to capeesh?

• capiche (alternate spelling)
• capisce (alternate spelling)

What are some words that often get used in discussing capeesh?

• request
• command
• order
• Italian American
• gangster

Capeesh is used to make sure that people have an understanding. It is often used to mimic the speech of Italian Americans.

"When you're here, you're family, or fuhgett about it, capeesh?" -Italian family reunion at Olive Garden

— Julia Edelman (@_juliaedelman) August 21, 2015

If you're going to be in the Lazy River at 6 Flags, you better be lazy & not acting like a cat in water. Capeesh?

— Maddy Skye (@MaddySkye) May 5, 2014

Please stop being rude to my friends and I'll stop being rude to you! Capeesh? 👌

— Kailen DeSchane (@kaykaloo) March 31, 2015

True or False?

Capeesh is used when a person is confused and is asking for more information from someone.