can
Contents
EnglishEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Middle English can, first and third person singular of connen, cunnen (“to be able, know how”), from Old English can(n), first and third person singular of cunnan (“to know how”), from Proto-Germanic *kunnaną, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- (whence know). Compare West Frisian kinne, Dutch kunnen, Low German könen, German können, Danish and Norwegian Bokmål kunne, Swedish and Norwegian Nynorsk kunna. More at canny, cunning.
PronunciationEdit
- (stressed)
- (unstressed)
VerbEdit
can (third-person singular simple present can, present participle -, simple past could, past participle (obsolete except in adjectival use) couth)
- (auxiliary verb, defective) To know how to; to be able to.
- She can speak English, French, and German. I can play football. Can you remember your fifth birthday?
- (Can we date this quote?) Reginald Pecock
- Clerks which can write books.
- 2013 July-August, Lee S. Langston, “The Adaptable Gas Turbine”, in American Scientist:
- Turbines have been around for a long time—windmills and water wheels are early examples. The name comes from the Latin turbo, meaning vortex, and thus the defining property of a turbine is that a fluid or gas turns the blades of a rotor, which is attached to a shaft that can perform useful work.
- (modal auxiliary verb, defective, informal) May; to be permitted or enabled to.
- You can go outside and play when you're finished with your homework. Can I use your pen?
- (modal auxiliary verb, defective) To have the potential to; be possible.
- Can it be Friday already?
- Teenagers can really try their parents' patience.
- Animals can experience emotions.
- 1922, Ben Travers, chapter 5, in A Cuckoo in the Nest:
- The most rapid and most seductive transition in all human nature is that which attends the palliation of a ravenous appetite. […] Can those harmless but refined fellow-diners be the selfish cads whose gluttony and personal appearance so raised your contemptuous wrath on your arrival?
- 2009, Annette Sym, Simply Too Good to be True, Greenleaf Book Group (→ISBN), page 4:
- Teenagers can be so cruel, and nicknames cut deep.
- (auxiliary verb, defective) Used with verbs of perception.
- Can you hear that?.
- I can feel the baby moving inside me.
- (obsolete, transitive) To know.
- ca.1360-1387, William Langland, Piers Plowman
- I can rimes of Robin Hood.
- ca.1360-1387, William Langland, Piers Plowman
- I can no Latin, quod she.
- (Can we date this quote?) William Shakespeare
- Let the priest in surplice white, / That defunctive music can.
- ca.1360-1387, William Langland, Piers Plowman
Usage notesEdit
- For missing forms, substitute inflected forms of be able to, as:
- I might be able to go.
- I was able to go yesterday.
- I have been able to go, since I was seven.
- I had been able to go before.
- I will be able to go tomorrow.
- The word could also suffices in many tenses. “I would be able to go” is equivalent to “I could go”, and “I was unable to go” can be rendered “I could not go”. (Unless there is a clear indication otherwise, “could verb” means “would be able to verb”, but “could not verb” means “was/were unable to verb”.)
- The present tense negative can not is usually contracted to cannot (more formal) or can’t (less formal).
- The use of can in asking permission sometimes is criticized as being impolite or incorrect by those who favour the more formal alternative “may I...?”.
- Can is sometimes used rhetorically to issue a command, placing the command in the form of a request. For instance, “Can you hand me that pen?” as a polite substitution for “Hand me that pen.”
- Some US dialects that glottalize the final /t/ in can’t (/kæn(ʔ)/), in order to differentiate can’t from can, pronounce can as /kɛn/ even when stressed.
SynonymsEdit
AntonymsEdit
TranslationsEdit
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
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See alsoEdit
Etymology 2Edit
From Middle English canne, from Old English canne (“glass, container, cup, can”), from Proto-Germanic *kannǭ (“can, tankard, mug, cup”), perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *gan-, *gandʰ- (“a vessel”). Cognate with Scots can (“can”), West Frisian kanne (“a jug, pitcher”), Dutch kan (“pot, mug”), German Kanne (“can, tankard, mug”), Danish kande (“can, mug, a measure”), Swedish kanna (“can, tankard, mug”), Icelandic kanna (“a can”).
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation, General American) enPR: kăn, IPA(key): /kæn/
- Rhymes: -æn
- (General Australian) IPA(key): /kæːn/
- Rhymes: -æːn
- (æ-tensing) IPA(key): [keən]
NounEdit
can (plural cans)
- A more or less cylindrical vessel for liquids, usually of steel or aluminium, but sometimes of plastic, and with a carrying handle over the top.
- A container used to carry and dispense water for plants (a watering can).
- A tin-plate canister, often cylindrical, for preserved foods such as fruit, meat, or fish.
- (archaic) A chamber pot, now (US, slang) a toilet or lavatory.
- Shit or get off the can.
- Bob's in the can. You can wait a few minutes or just leave it with me.
- (US, slang) Buttocks.
- (slang) Jail or prison.
- Bob's in the can. He won't be back for a few years.
- (slang, plural) Headphones.
- (archaic) A drinking cup.
- Shakespeare, Twelfth Night II.iii
- SIR ANDREW: Nay, my troth, I know not: but I know, to be up late is to be up late.
- SIR TOBY: A false conclusion: I hate it as an unfilled can.
- Tennyson
- Fill the cup and fill the can, / Have a rouse before the morn.
- Shakespeare, Twelfth Night II.iii
- (nautical) A cube-shaped buoy or marker used to denote a port-side lateral mark
- A chimney pot.
SynonymsEdit
- (toilet): See Thesaurus:chamber pot and Thesaurus:toilet
- (place with a toilet): See Thesaurus:bathroom
- (cylindrical metal container): tin (British & Australian at least)
HyponymsEdit
Derived termsEdit
Related termsEdit
TranslationsEdit
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
VerbEdit
can (third-person singular simple present cans, present participle canning, simple past and past participle canned)
- To preserve, by heating and sealing in a can or jar.
- They spent August canning fruit and vegetables.
- to discard, scrap or terminate (an idea, project, etc.).
- He canned the whole project because he thought it would fail.
- To shut up.
- Can your gob.
- (US, euphemistic) To fire or dismiss an employee.
- The boss canned him for speaking out.
TranslationsEdit
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AnagramsEdit
AfarEdit
AragoneseEdit
EtymologyEdit
NounEdit
can m (plural cans)
ReferencesEdit
- Bal Palazios, Santiago (2002), “can”, in Dizionario breu de a luenga aragonesa, Zaragoza, →ISBN
AsturianEdit
AzerbaijaniEdit
Other scripts | |
---|---|
Cyrillic | ҹан |
Roman | can |
Perso-Arabic | جان |
EtymologyEdit
NounEdit
can (definite accusative canı, plural canlar)
DeclensionEdit
CatalanEdit
PronunciationEdit
ContractionEdit
can
Further readingEdit
- “can” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
Classical NahuatlEdit
GalicianEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Old Portuguese can, from Latin canis, canem.
NounEdit
can m (plural cans)
Related termsEdit
Etymology 2Edit
NounEdit
can m (plural cans)
InterlinguaEdit
IrishEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Old Irish canaid, from Proto-Celtic *kaneti (“to sing”), from Proto-Indo-European *keh₂n-. Compare Welsh canu, Latin canō, Ancient Greek καναχέω (kanakhéō), Persian خواندن (xândan).
PronunciationEdit
VerbEdit
can (present analytic canann, future analytic canfaidh, verbal noun canadh, past participle canta)
- to sing
- 2015, Proinsias Mac a' Bhaird, transl., Maura McHugh, editor, Amhrán na Mara (fiction, in Irish), Cartoon Saloon; Coiscéim, translation of Song of the Sea by Will Collins, →ISBN:
- Thuas i dteach an tsolais, faoi réaltaí geala, canann Bronach Amhrán na Mara dá mac Ben atá cúig bliana d'aois.
- Up in the lighthouse, under twinkling stars, Bronach sings the Song of the Sea to her five-year-old son, Ben.
ConjugationEdit
* Indirect relative
† Archaic or dialect form
‡‡ Dependent form used with particles that trigger eclipsis
MutationEdit
Irish mutation | ||
---|---|---|
Radical | Lenition | Eclipsis |
can | chan | gcan |
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs. |
IstriotEdit
ItalianEdit
PronunciationEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Turkic.
Alternative formsEdit
NounEdit
can m (invariable)
- Obsolete spelling of khan
Etymology 2Edit
See the etymology of the main entry.
NounEdit
can m (plural cani)
KurdishEdit
LigurianEdit
MandarinEdit
RomanizationEdit
can
- Nonstandard spelling of cān.
- Nonstandard spelling of cán.
- Nonstandard spelling of cǎn.
- Nonstandard spelling of càn.
Usage notesEdit
- English transcriptions of Mandarin speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.
Middle DutchEdit
Middle EnglishEdit
OccitanEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Old Occitan [Term?], from Latin canis, canem.
NounEdit
can m (plural cans, feminine canha, feminine plural canhas)
Old OccitanEdit
Old PortugueseEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Latin canis (“dog”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱwṓ (“dog”).
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
can m
- dog
- 13th century, Cancioneiro da Biblioteca Nacional, Alfonso X of Castile, B 476: Non quer'eu donzela fea (facsimile)
- Non quereu donzela fea / E ueloſa come cam
- I do not want an ugly maiden, as hairy as a dog
- Non quereu donzela fea / E ueloſa come cam
- 13th century, Cancioneiro da Biblioteca Nacional, Alfonso X of Castile, B 476: Non quer'eu donzela fea (facsimile)
DescendantsEdit
ScotsEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Middle English can, first and third person singular of connen, cunnen (“to be able, know how”), from Old English can(n), first and third person singular of cunnan (“to know how”), from Proto-Germanic *kunnaną, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- (whence know).
VerbEdit
can (third-person singular present can, past cud)
- can
- be able to
- He shuid can dae that. ― He should be able to do that.
Derived termsEdit
- cannae (“cannot”)
Scottish GaelicEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Old Irish canaid (“to sing”), from Proto-Celtic *kaneti (“to sing”), from Proto-Indo-European *keh₂n-. Compare Welsh canu, Latin canō, Ancient Greek καναχέω (kanakhéō), Persian خواندن (xândan).
VerbEdit
can (past chan, future canaidh, verbal noun cantainn, past participle cante)
- to say
ReferencesEdit
- Faclair Gàidhlig Dwelly Air Loidhne, Dwelly, Edward (1911), Faclair Gàidhlig gu Beurla le Dealbhan/The Illustrated [Scottish] Gaelic-English Dictionary (10th ed.), Edinburgh: Birlinn Limited, →ISBN
SpanishEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Latin canis, canem (compare Aromanian cãne, Catalan ca, French chien, Italian cane, Portuguese cão), from Proto-Italic *kō (accusative *kwanem), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱwṓ (accusative *ḱwónm̥).
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
can m (plural canes)
SynonymsEdit
HypernymsEdit
- cánido m
HyponymsEdit
- cachorro m
Related termsEdit
TurkishEdit
EtymologyEdit
Borrowing from Persian جان (jân, “soul, vital spirit, life”). Cognate with English quick.
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
can (definite accusative canı, plural canlar)
DeclensionEdit
Inflection | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Nominative | can | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Definite accusative | canı | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Singular | Plural | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Nominative | can | canlar | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Definite accusative | canı | canları | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dative | cana | canlara | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Locative | canda | canlarda | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ablative | candan | canlardan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Genitive | canın | canların | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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See alsoEdit
VenetianEdit
VietnameseEdit
PronunciationEdit
Etymology 1Edit
Sino-Vietnamese word from 肝.
NounEdit
can
- (alternative medicine) Synonym of gan (“liver”)
Etymology 2Edit
Sino-Vietnamese word from 干.
NounEdit
can
- Short for Thiên Can (“celestial stem”).
VerbEdit
can
- to concern; to apply to
- to be involved (in); to be implicated (in)
Etymology 3Edit
Non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese 諫 (SV: gián).
VerbEdit
can
Etymology 4Edit
NounEdit
Etymology 5Edit
VerbEdit
can
Etymology 6Edit
VerbEdit
can
- to trace (through translucent paper), to do tracing
Derived termsEdit
VolapükEdit
WelshEdit
PronunciationEdit
Audio (file)
Etymology 1Edit
AdjectiveEdit
can
NounEdit
can m (plural caniau)
Etymology 2Edit
From Proto-Celtic *kantom (“hundred”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱm̥tóm.
AdjectiveEdit
can
Etymology 3Edit
NounEdit
can m (plural caniau)
- a can
MutationEdit
Welsh mutation | |||
---|---|---|---|
radical | soft | nasal | aspirate |
can | gan | nghan | chan |
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs. |