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View synonyms for cant

cant

1

[ kant ]

noun

  1. insincere, especially conventional expressions of enthusiasm for high ideals, goodness, or piety.

    Synonyms: humbug, pretense, sham, hypocrisy

  2. the private language of the underworld.
  3. the phraseology peculiar to a particular class, party, profession, etc.:

    the cant of the fashion industry.

  4. whining or singsong speech, especially of beggars.

verb (used without object)

  1. to talk hypocritically.
  2. to speak in the whining or singsong tone of a beggar; beg.

cant

2

[ kant ]

noun

  1. a salient angle.
  2. a sudden movement that tilts or overturns a thing.
  3. a slanting or tilted position.
  4. an oblique line or surface, as one formed by cutting off the corner of a square of cube.
  5. an oblique or slanting face of anything.
  6. Civil Engineering. bank 1( def 6 ).
  7. a sudden pitch or toss.
  8. Also called flitch. a partly trimmed log.

adjective

  1. oblique or slanting.

verb (used with object)

  1. to bevel; form an oblique surface upon.
  2. to put in an oblique position; tilt; tip.
  3. to throw with a sudden jerk.

verb (used without object)

  1. to take or have an inclined position; tilt; tip.

cant

3

[ kahnt ]

adjective

, Scot. and North England.

can't

4

[ kant, kahnt ]

  1. contraction of cannot.

Cant.

5

abbreviation for

  1. Canterbury.
  2. Cantonese.

cant

1

/ kɑːnt /

adjective

  1. dialect.
    lusty; merry; hearty

cant

2

/ kænt /

noun

  1. inclination from a vertical or horizontal plane; slope; slant
  2. a sudden movement that tilts or turns something
  3. the angle or tilt thus caused
  4. a corner or outer angle, esp of a building
  5. an oblique or slanting surface, edge, or line

verb

  1. to tip, tilt, or overturn, esp with a sudden jerk
  2. to set in an oblique position
  3. another word for bevel

adjective

  1. oblique; slanting
  2. having flat surfaces and without curves

can't

3

/ kɑːnt /

contraction of

  1. cannot

Cant.

4

abbreviation for

  1. Canterbury
  2. Bible Canticles

cant

5

/ kænt /

noun

  1. insincere talk, esp concerning religion or morals; pious platitudes
  2. stock phrases that have become meaningless through repetition
  3. specialized vocabulary of a particular group, such as thieves, journalists, or lawyers; jargon
  4. singsong whining speech, as used by beggars

verb

  1. intr to speak in or use cant

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Usage Note

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Spelling Note

See cannot.

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Derived Forms

  • ˈcantic, adjective
  • ˈcantingly, adverb
  • ˈcanter, noun

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Other Words From

  • canting·ly adverb

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Word History and Origins

Origin of cant1

First recorded in 1495–1505; from Latin base cant- in cantus “song,” canticus “singsong,” etc., whence Old English cantere “singer,” cantic “song”; chant

Origin of cant2

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English: “side, part, border,” from Anglo-French cant, Old French chant, from an unrecorded Romance cantu(m) with the related senses “rim, border” and “angle corner,” probably from Celtic; compare Latin cant(h)us “tire, iron tire” (from Celtic kantos ), Welsh cant “periphery, rim, felloe” canteen, cantle, canton

Origin of cant3

First recorded in 1325–1375; Middle English cant, kant, kaunt “bold, brave, fierce,” from Low German kant “merry, bold”

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Word History and Origins

Origin of cant1

C14: related to Low German kant bold, merry

Origin of cant2

C14 (in the sense: edge, corner): perhaps from Latin canthus iron hoop round a wheel, of obscure origin

Origin of cant3

C16: probably via Norman French canter to sing, from Latin cantāre; used disparagingly, from the 12th century, of chanting in religious services

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Idioms and Phrases

  • beggars can't be choosers
  • if you can't beat them, join them
  • you can't take it with you
  • you can't win them all
  • can

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Example Sentences

Satirists occupy a perilous position—to skewer dogma and cant, and to antagonize the establishment while needing its protection.

And of course: “Bye Ryan Braun, you cheating piece of sh*t. CANT JEW YOUR WAY OUT OF IT THIS TIME.”

“Only those cant [sic] read chinese and not familiar with modern chinese history will believe the story,” wrote one.

On the periphery, tents pitched under overpasses cant against the dirty wind.

Bath's The Secret of Castle Cant is ranked No. 331,025 in book sales on Amazon's site.

But I cant stay here all day; Mrs. Towne is to take me to spend the day with the Gesners.

I didnt think much of that, but he said afterward, A man may do in an hour what he cant undo in a lifetime.

I cant let you increase your indebtedness, and his pudgy hand lifted the basket and put it on the shelf behind him.

A grain—requiring to be picked out with a pin and microscope—of truth, with a bushel of bunkum or cant.

Cant expect money before its due, I spose, said the old man, licking his thin lips.

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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