can

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

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Contents 1 English 1.1 Etymology 1 1.1.1 Pronunciation 1.1.2 Verb 1.1.2.1 Usage notes 1.1.2.2 Synonyms 1.1.2.3 Antonyms 1.1.2.4 Translations 1.2 Etymology 2 1.2.1 Pronunciation 1.2.2 Noun 1.2.2.1 Synonyms 1.2.2.2 Derived terms 1.2.2.3 Translations 1.2.3 Verb 1.2.3.1 Translations 1.3 Anagrams 2 Afar 2.1 Noun 3 Azeri 3.1 Etymology 3.2 Noun 4 Classical Nahuatl 4.1 Pronunciation 4.2 Adverb 4.2.1 Derived terms 5 Galician 5.1 Etymology 5.2 Noun 5.2.1 Related terms 6 Interlingua 6.1 Noun 7 Irish 7.1 Pronunciation 7.2 Verb 7.2.1 Inflection 7.2.2 Mutation 8 Italian 8.1 Noun 9 Mandarin 9.1 Pinyin syllable 9.1.1 Usage notes 10 Occitan 10.1 Noun 11 Spanish 11.1 Etymology 11.2 Noun 11.2.1 See also 12 Turkish 12.1 Pronunciation 12.2 Etymology 12.3 Noun 12.3.1 Declension 12.3.2 See also 13 Welsh 13.1 Adjective 13.2 Noun 13.2.1 Mutation 13.3 See also 13.4 References

[edit] English

[edit] Etymology 1

Old English cunnan (“‘to know (how)’”).

[edit] Pronunciation

• (stressed)
  • enPR: kăn, IPA: /kæn/, /kɛn/, SAMPA: /k{n/
  •  Audio (US)^{help, file}
  • Rhymes: -æn
• (unstressed)
  • IPA: /kən/, /kn̩/, SAMPA: /k@n/, /kn=/

[edit] Verb

- (third-person singular simple present can, present participle -, simple past could, past participle couth (obsolete except in adjective use))

1. (modal 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?

2. (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?

3. (obsolete, transitive) To know.

[edit] Usage notes

For missing forms, substitute inflected forms of be able to, as:

• I might be able to go.
• I was able to go yesterday.
• 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 not able to go" can be rendered "I couldn't go". (Unless there is a clear indication otherwise, "could verb" means "would be able to verb", but "couldn't verb" means "was/were not able to verb".)

The present tense negative can not is often contracted to cannot or can't.

The use of can in asking permission is sometimes 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."

[edit] Synonyms

• be able to
• may

[edit] Antonyms

• cannot
• can’t

[edit] Translations

[edit] Etymology 2

Middle English < Old English canne (“‘glass, container, cup’”).

[edit] Pronunciation

• (RP), (GenAm)
  • enPR: kăn, IPA: /kæn/, SAMPA: /k{n/
  • Rhymes: -æn
• (Aus)
  • IPA: /kæːn/, SAMPA: /k{:n/
  • Rhymes: -æːn

[edit] Noun

can (plural cans)

1. A more or less cylindrical vessel for liquids, usually of steel or aluminium.
2. A container used to carry and dispense water for plants (a watering can).
3. A tin-plate canister, often cylindrical, for preserved foods such as fruit, meat, or fish.
4. (US, euphemism) toilet, bathroom.
5. (US, euphemism) buttocks.
6. (slang) headphones

[edit] Synonyms

• (cyclindrical metal container): tin (British & Australian at least)

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Translations

[edit] Verb

to can (third-person singular simple present cans, present participle canning, simple past and past participle canned)

1. To preserve, by heating and sealing in a can or jar.

   They spent August canning fruit and vegetables.

2. to discard, scrap or terminate (an idea, project, etc.).

   He canned the whole project because he thought it would fail.

3. To shut up.

   Can your gob.

4. (US, euphemism) To fire or dismiss an employee.

   The boss canned him for speaking out.

[edit] Translations

[edit] Anagrams

• Alphagram: acn
• ANC
• CNA
• NCA

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[edit] Afar

[edit] Noun

can

1. milk

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[edit] Azeri

[edit] Etymology

From Persian جان (jân), “‘soul, vital spirit, life’”), whence also Turkish can and Armenian ջան (ǰan).

[edit] Noun

can

1. soul, spirit
2. being, creature, life
3. body
4. force, vigour

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[edit] Classical Nahuatl

[edit] Pronunciation

• IPA: /kaːn/

[edit] Adverb

cān

1. Where.

[edit] Derived terms

• campa
• canah

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[edit] Galician

[edit] Etymology

From Latin canis.

[edit] Noun

can m. (plural cans)

1. dog

[edit] Related terms

• cadela

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[edit] Interlingua

[edit] Noun

can (plural canes)

1. dog
2. cock, hammer (of a firearm)

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[edit] Irish

[edit] Pronunciation

• IPA: [kan̪ˠ]

[edit] Verb

can

1. To sing.

[edit] Inflection

[edit] Mutation

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.

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[edit] Italian

[edit] Noun

can m. (plural cani)

1. (poetic and literary form of cane) dog

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[edit] Mandarin

[edit] Pinyin syllable

can

1. A transliteration of any of a number of Chinese characters properly represented as having one of four tones, cān, cán, cǎn, or càn.

[edit] Usage notes

English transcriptions of Chinese speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Chinese language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.

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[edit] Occitan

[edit] Noun

can m. (plural cans)

1. dog, hound

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[edit] Spanish

[edit] Etymology

From Latin canis. Compare Aromanian cãne, Portuguese cão.

[edit] Noun

can m. (plural canes)

1. dog, hound

[edit] See also

• cachorro m.
• chucho m.
• perro m.
• pichicho m.

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[edit] Turkish

[edit] Pronunciation

• IPA: dʒan

[edit] Etymology

From Persian جان (jân), “‘soul, vital spirit, life’”).

[edit] Noun

can (definite accusative canı, plural canlar)

1. soul, life, being
2. sweetheart

[edit] Declension

[edit] See also

• Can

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[edit] Welsh

[edit] Adjective

can

1. bleached, white
2. hundred

[edit] Noun

can m. (plural caniau) 

1. a can
2. flour

[edit] Mutation

Welsh mutation
radical	soft	nasal	aspirate
can	gan	nghan	chan

[edit] See also

• cân

[edit] References

• Definition from the BBC.