Etimology
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-West Germanic *kunnan, from Proto-Germanic *kunnaną, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- (whence also know). Doublet of con. See also: canny, cunning.
verb
can (third-person singular simple present can, present participle (by suppletion) able, simple past could, past participle (obsolete except in adjectival use) couth)
(auxiliary verb, defective) To know how to; to be able to.
(modal auxiliary verb, defective, informal) May; to be permitted or enabled to.
(modal auxiliary verb, defective) To have the potential to; be possible.
(auxiliary verb, defective) Used with verbs of perception.
(obsolete, transitive) To know.
(India, nonstandard, proscribed) To be (followed by a word like able, possible, allowed).
Examples
Synonym: be able to
Antonyms: cannot, can't
She can speak English, French, and German.
I can play football.
Can you remember your fifth birthday?
prouyng which eny clerk can or woel or mai make bi eny maner euydence of resoun or of Scripture, and namelich of resoun into the contrarie.
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.
If thou canst awake by four o' the clock, / I prithee call me. Sleep hath seized me wholly.
Synonym: may
You can go outside and play when you're finished with your homework.
Can I use your pen?
Can it be Friday already?
Teenagers can really try their parents' patience.
Animals can experience emotions.
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?
Teenagers can be so cruel, and nicknames cut deep.
Can you hear that?
I can feel the baby moving inside me.
Synonyms: cognize, grok, ken
I can rimes of Robin Hood.
I can no Latin, quod she.
Let the priest in surplice white, / That defunctive music can.The spelling has been modernized.
The spelling has been modernized.
Importance of Identifying Leaf: Identify Plants: If we can able to identify leaf, we can easily able to identify plants.
Children in need of care and protection can allowed to be placed in foster care based on the orders of the CWC. The selection of the foster family is based on the family's ability, intent, capacity, and prior experience of taking care […]
It can possible to design the ruleset refreshes that allow them to subsequently run at precise interludes and these keep informed.
Etimology
From Middle English canne, from Old English canne (“glass, container, cup, can”), from Proto-Germanic *kannǭ (“can, tankard, mug, cup”).
noun
can (plural cans)
A more or less cylindrical and often metal container or vessel.
A container used to carry and dispense water for plants (a watering can).
(archaic) A chamber pot.
(US, slang) Buttocks.
(slang) Jail or prison.
(slang, in the plural) Headphones.
(archaic) A drinking cup.
(nautical) A cube-shaped buoy or marker used to denote a port-side lateral mark
A chimney pot.
(slang, in the plural) An E-meter used in Scientology auditing.
(US, slang) An ounce (or sometimes, two ounces) of marijuana.
A protective cover for the fuel element in a nuclear reactor.
(vulgar, slang, Canada, US) The breasts of a woman.
Examples
Synonym: tin
: Synonyms: see Thesaurus:chamber pot, Thesaurus:toilet
: Synonyms: see Thesaurus:bathroom
Shit or get off the can.
Bob's in the can. You can wait a few minutes or just leave it with me.
I didn't have anything special to do, so I went down to the can and chewed the rag with him while he was shaving.
If he was going to hide out in the can, he can just stay there & sleep in the tub.
Bob’s in the can. He won’t be back for a few years.
The undercover cop never liked the Monkey Man / Even back in childhood, he wanted to see him in the can
VVhen the vulgar ſort / Sit on their Ale-bench, vvith their cups and kannes, / Matters of ſtate be not their common talke, / Nor pure religion by their lips prophande.
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.
Fill the cup and fill the can: / Have a rouse before the morn: / Every minute dies a man, / Every minute one is born.
[…] prosecution for selling and giving away marijuana, the evidence clearly constituted substantial proof that a package purchased by defendant contained marijuana where he requested "four cans" of marijuana to be delivered to himself and […]
Related words
hyponyms
aerosol can
beer can
billycan
garbage can
jerrycan
lading-can
soda can
spray can
sprinkling can
tin can
trash can
watering can
verb
can (third-person singular simple present cans, present participle canning, simple past and past participle canned)
To seal in a can.
To preserve by heating and sealing in a jar or can.
To discard, scrap or terminate (an idea, project, etc.).
(transitive, slang) To shut up.
(US, euphemistic) To fire or dismiss an employee.
(golf, slang, transitive) To hole the ball.
(transitive) To cover (the fuel element in a nuclear reactor) with a protective cover.
Examples
They canned air to sell as a novelty to tourists.
They spent August canning fruit and vegetables.
He canned the whole project because he thought it would fail.
My next stop is Oxford, which has also grown with the addition of new platforms to accommodate the Chiltern Railways service to London via Bicester - although, short sightedly, the planned electrification from Paddington was canned. Evidence of the volte-face can be seen along the line at places such as Radley, where mast piles are already sunk or lie discarded at the lineside.
Can your gob.
The boss canned him for speaking out.
As a result of his refusal, the employee was subsequently canned in 2015 on the basis of "professional inadequacy" and failing to embody the "party" atmosphere that the consultancy was trying to cultivate.
I thought I had canned it, but it just missed, and I tapped in the second one for a par.
Related words
synonyms
(discard): bin, dump, scrap; see also Thesaurus:junk
(shut up): can it, stifle; see also Thesaurus:stop talking or Thesaurus:make silent
(dismiss an employee): axe, let go, sack; see also Thesaurus:lay off