cant
Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary
Contents |
[ English
[ Pronunciation
[ Etymology 1
From Latin cantare (sing', probably via Old Northern French canter 'sing, tell', cognate with chant)
[ Noun
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Singular |
Plural |
cant (plural cants)
- (Should we delete(+) this redundant sense?) The jargon of a particular class or subgroup.
- He had the look of a prince, but the cant of a fishmonger.
- A private or secret language used by a religious sect, gang, or other group.
- Shelta.
- Empty, hypocritical talk.
- People claim to care about the poor of Africa, but it is largely cant.
- A musical singing sound.
- (heraldry) A blazon of a coat of arms that makes a pun upon the name of the bearer.
- A slope, an incline.
- "The roof has a cant on the south end."
[ Synonyms
[ Related terms
[ Translations
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[ Verb
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Infinitive |
Third person singular |
Simple past |
Past participle |
Present participle |
to cant (third-person singular simple present cants, present participle canting, simple past and past participle canted)
- (intransitive) To speak with the jargon of a class or subgroup.
- (intransitive) To speak in set phrases.
- (intransitive) To preach in a singsong fashion, especially in a false or empty manner.
- (intransitive, heraldry) Of a blazon, to make a pun that references the bearer of a coat of arms.
[ Etymology 2
[ Noun
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Singular |
Plural |
cant (plural cants)
- (obsolete) corner, niche
- slope, the angle at which something is set.
- 1883: Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island, Part Five
- Owing to the cant of the vessel, the masts hung far out over the water, and from my perch on the cross-trees I had nothing below me but the surface of the bay.
- 1883: Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island, Part Five
- A movement or throw that overturns something.
[ Related terms
[ Translations
[ Verb
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Infinitive |
Third person singular |
Simple past |
Past participle |
Present participle |
to cant (third-person singular simple present cants, present participle canting, simple past and past participle canted)
- (transitive) To set (something) at an angle.
- (transitive) To bevel an edge or corner.
- (transitive) To overturn so that the contents are emptied.
[ Translations
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[ Etymology 3
[ Verb
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Infinitive |
Third person singular |
Simple past |
Past participle |
Present participle |
to cant (third-person singular simple present cants, present participle canting, simple past and past participle canted)
- (transitive) To divide or parcel out.
[ Etymology 4
From Middle English, presumably from hypothetical Template:MLG kant
[ Adjective
kant
cant (not comparable)
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Positive |
Superlative |
[ Catalan
[ Etymology
[ Noun
cant
[ Welsh
[ Noun
cant m. (plural cannoedd)
cant m. (plural cantau)
[ Mutation
| Welsh mutation | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| radical | soft | nasal | aspirate |
| cant | gant | nghant | chant |
Hear it pronounced