Many Countries claim to be a Republic,but do they really know the meaning of the word?

The term "Republic" comes from the Latin and is composed by two words: "Res" = Thing and "Publica" = Public = "Public Thing". So it is a contradiction to say that a Country is a Capitalistic Republic.Capitalism goes hand in hand with Monarchy and Despotism,it does not allow equality amongst Citizens so how can it be a "Public (people's) Thing)?