cancel
Americanverb (used with object)
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to make void, as a contract or other obligation; annul: to cancel a magazine subscription.
to cancel a hotel reservation;
to cancel a magazine subscription.
- Synonyms:
- rescind , countermand
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to decide or announce that a planned event will not take place; call off.
to cancel a meeting.
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to mark or perforate (a postage stamp, admission ticket, etc.) so as to render invalid for reuse.
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to neutralize; compensate for; counterbalance.
His sincere apology canceled his sarcastic remark.
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to publicly reject, boycott, or no longer support (a person or group) because of socially or morally unacceptable views or actions.
Fans have been quick to cancel their favorite rapper or other celebrity.
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Accounting.
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to close (an account) by crediting or paying all outstanding charges.
He plans to cancel his account at the department store.
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to eliminate or offset (a debit, credit, etc.) with an entry for an equal amount on the opposite side of a ledger, as when a payment is received on a debt.
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Mathematics. to eliminate by striking out a factor common to both the denominator and numerator of a fraction, equivalent terms on opposite sides of an equation, etc.
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to cross out (words, letters, etc.) by drawing a line over the item.
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Printing. to omit.
verb (used without object)
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to counterbalance or compensate for one another; become neutralized (often followed byout ).
The pros and cons cancel out.
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Mathematics. (of factors common to both the denominator and numerator of a fraction, certain terms on opposite sides of an equation, etc.) to be equivalent; to allow cancellation.
noun
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an act of canceling.
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Printing, Bookbinding.
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an omitted passage, page, etc.
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a replacement for an omitted part.
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verb
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to order (something already arranged, such as a meeting or event) to be postponed indefinitely; call off
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to revoke or annul
the order for the new television set was cancelled
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to delete (writing, numbers, etc); cross out
he cancelled his name and substituted hers
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to mark (a cheque, postage stamp, ticket, etc) with an official stamp or by a perforation to prevent further use
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to counterbalance; make up for (a deficiency, etc)
his generosity cancelled out his past unkindness
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to close (an account) by discharging any outstanding debts
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(sometimes foll by out) accounting to eliminate (a debit or credit) by making an offsetting entry on the opposite side of the account
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maths
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to eliminate (numbers, quantities, or terms) as common factors from both the numerator and denominator of a fraction or as equal terms from opposite sides of an equation
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(intr) to be able to be eliminated in this way
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noun
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a new leaf or section of a book replacing a defective one, one containing errors, or one that has been omitted
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a less common word for cancellation
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music a US word for natural
Usage
What's the difference between canceled and cancelled? Canceled and cancelled are alternate forms of the past tense of the verb cancel.Canceled is the primary spelling used in American English, while cancelled is the spelling used in British English and preferred in many locations, including in the U.K., Ireland, Australia, and Canada. Perhaps for this reason, cancelled is also occasionally used in American English.This is part of a general British English spelling pattern in which a single letter L at the end of a verb is doubled when the verb is changed to form a different tense, such as by adding -ed for past tense or -ing for continuous tense. So cancelling is used in British English, while canceling is primarily used in American English. This same pattern applies for many words, such as counsel, but not all. When the stress falls on the final syllable, the L is usually doubled (the past tense of propel is typically spelled propelled, for example).Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between canceled and cancelled.
Related Words
Cancel, delete, erase, obliterate indicate that something is no longer to be considered usable or in force. To cancel is to cross something out by stamping a mark over it, drawing lines through it, or the like: to cancel a stamp, a word. To delete is to cross something out from written matter or from matter to be printed, often in accordance with a printer's or proofreader's symbol indicating the material is to be omitted: to delete part of a line. To erase is to remove by scraping or rubbing: to erase a capital letter. To obliterate is to blot out entirely, so as to remove all sign or trace of: to obliterate a record.
Other Word Forms
- cancelable adjective
- canceler noun
- canceller noun
- recancel verb (used with object)
- self-canceled adjective
- self-cancelled adjective
- uncancelable adjective
- uncanceled adjective
- uncancellable adjective
- uncancelled adjective
Etymology
Origin of cancel
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English cancellen, cansellen “to annul, revoke,” from Anglo-French canceler, from Old French chanceler “to cross out with X's or parallel lines,” from Medieval Latin cancellāre “to cross out,” from Latin: “to make like a lattice,” derivative of cancellī “latticed barriers, gratings, grilles,” plural of cancellus; cancellus
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The picture wasn’t as bad early Monday with around 2,000 flights delayed and just 227 canceled as of 10 a.m.
From Barron's
“Now if we have our licenses canceled, who will buy these trucks and trailers from us?”
From Los Angeles Times
The clubhouse had been due to host a number of events over the festive period which have had to be cancelled.
From BBC
Hamasaki, who was in Shanghai as part of her Asia tour, said she was suddenly asked on Friday to cancel her concert.
From BBC
"A host of corruption allegations in Chinese arms procurement led to major arms contracts being postponed or cancelled in 2024," Nan Tian, Director of SIPRI's Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme, said in a statement.
From Barron's
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.
