canton
English edit
Etymology 1 edit
1530s, from Middle French canton, from Old French canton (“corner”); heraldic sense from the 1570s, geographic sense from c. 1600.
Alternative forms edit
Pronunciation edit
- IPA(key): /ˈkæntn̩/
- IPA(key): /ˈkæntɒn/ (especially in the flag sense)
Audio (Southern England) (file)
Noun edit
canton (plural cantons)
- A division of a political unit.
- 1912, Joseph McCabe (translator), We Must Take Sides; or, The Principal of Action (originally by Voltaire)
- These three millions live in a small canton of Egypt which cannot maintain twenty thousand people
- 20 May, 1686, Gilbert Burnet, letter from Nimmengen
- There is another piece of Holbein's, […] in which, in six several cantons, the several parts of our Saviour's passion are represented.
- One of the states comprising the Swiss Confederation.
- A subdivision of an arrondissement of France.
- A division of Luxembourg, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, etc.
- (obsolete) A subdivision of a county, of Quebec, Canada; equivalent to a township.
- 1912, Joseph McCabe (translator), We Must Take Sides; or, The Principal of Action (originally by Voltaire)
- A small community or clan.
- A subdivision of a flag, the rectangular inset on the upper hoist (i.e., flagpole) side (e.g., the stars of the US national flag are in a canton).
- (heraldry) A division of a shield occupying one third of the chief, usually on the dexter side, formed by a perpendicular line from the top meeting a horizontal line from the side.
- 1662 August 31 (Gregorian calendar), John Evelyn, “[Diary entry for 21 August 1662]”, in William Bray, editor, Memoirs, Illustrative of the Life and Writings of John Evelyn, […], 2nd edition, volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […]; and sold by John and Arthur Arch, […], published 1819, →OCLC:
- The king gave us the arms of England to be borne in a canton in our arms.
Translations edit
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Verb edit
canton (third-person singular simple present cantons, present participle cantoning, simple past and past participle cantoned)
- (transitive) To delineate as a separate district.
- (transitive) To divide into cantons.
- (transitive) To allot quarters to troops.
Etymology 2 edit
Noun edit
canton (plural cantons)
- (obsolete) A song or canto.
- c. 1601–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Twelfe Night, or What You Will”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene v]:
- He came to whisper Wolsey.
See also edit
Anagrams edit
French edit
Etymology edit
Inherited from Middle French canton, from Old French canton (from the 1240s), from Old Occitan canton (“corner; canton”) (recorded before 1218), adopted in Occitan from North Italian (Gallo-Italic, early Lombard) cantone (“edge, corner; canton”), ultimately representing Latin cant- (“rim (of a wheel)”) with the addition of the -ō (accusative -ōnem) suffix forming augmentatives in Romance.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
canton m (plural cantons)
Descendants edit
- → German: Kanton
Further reading edit
- “canton”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Occitan edit
Etymology edit
From Gallo-Italic cantone. From canto + -one. Related to Latin canthus (“rim (of a wheel)”).
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
canton m (plural cantons)
Derived terms edit
Romanian edit
Etymology edit
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
canton n (plural cantoane)
Declension edit
singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
indefinite articulation | definite articulation | indefinite articulation | definite articulation | |
nominative/accusative | (un) canton | cantonul | (niște) cantoane | cantoanele |
genitive/dative | (unui) canton | cantonului | (unor) cantoane | cantoanelor |
vocative | cantonule | cantoanelor |
Derived terms edit
Further reading edit
- canton in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language)
Venetian edit
Noun edit
canton m (plural cantoni)