cancel

American  

[kan-suhl] / ˈkæn səl /

verb (used with object)

canceled, canceling, cancelled, cancelling

1. 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

2. to decide or announce that a planned event will not take place; call off.

   to cancel a meeting.

3. to mark or perforate (a postage stamp, admission ticket, etc.) so as to render invalid for reuse.

4. to neutralize; compensate for; counterbalance.

   His sincere apology canceled his sarcastic remark.

5. 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.

6. Accounting.

   1. to close (an account) by crediting or paying all outstanding charges.

      He plans to cancel his account at the department store.

   2. 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.

7. 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.

8. to cross out (words, letters, etc.) by drawing a line over the item.

9. Printing. to omit.

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verb (used without object)

canceled, canceling, cancelled, cancelling

1. to counterbalance or compensate for one another; become neutralized (often followed byout ).

   The pros and cons cancel out.

2. 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

• cancels
  plural

1. an act of canceling.

2. Printing, Bookbinding.

   1. an omitted passage, page, etc.

   2. a replacement for an omitted part.

cancel British  

/ ˈkænsəl /

verb

1. to order (something already arranged, such as a meeting or event) to be postponed indefinitely; call off

2. to revoke or annul

   the order for the new television set was cancelled

3. to delete (writing, numbers, etc); cross out

   he cancelled his name and substituted hers

4. to mark (a cheque, postage stamp, ticket, etc) with an official stamp or by a perforation to prevent further use

5. to counterbalance; make up for (a deficiency, etc)

   his generosity cancelled out his past unkindness

6. 1. to close (an account) by discharging any outstanding debts

   2. (sometimes foll by out) accounting to eliminate (a debit or credit) by making an offsetting entry on the opposite side of the account

7. maths

   1. 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

   2. (intr) to be able to be eliminated in this way

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noun

1. a new leaf or section of a book replacing a defective one, one containing errors, or one that has been omitted

2. a less common word for cancellation

3. 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.

Synonym Usage

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

Derived Forms

• canceler
  noun
• canceller
  noun
• recancel
  verb (used with object)
• cancelable
  adjective
• self-canceled
  adjective
• self-cancelled
  adjective
• uncancelable
  adjective
• uncanceled
  adjective
• uncancellable
  adjective
• uncancelled
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• cancels
  plural

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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; see cancellus

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Explanation

To cancel means to call off or postpone indefinitely. Which is probably what you would do if the hotel you were planning to stay in has an infestation of bedbugs. Scrub, scratch, or strike down — those are all other ways of saying cancel. People often cancel plans, deciding not to do something they had already scheduled. In math, if the numerator and a denominator of a fraction have common factors you can cancel the factors out, which means delete them. To cancel a debt means to get rid of it. A cancel on a postage stamp is the mark that shows it has been used.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cancel cancels canceled canceling cancelled cancelling

Because the magnetic contributions oppose one another, they cancel out, leaving no overall magnetization.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 4, 2026

On that score, Netflix has been the envy of streaming: Its customers rarely cancel.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

“That usually means you can’t cancel so you either have to be 100% you’re going or get trip insurance.”

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 28, 2026

The Vatican said Friday that Leo would cancel a planned trip to Assisi on October 27th, on the recommendation of his doctors.

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026

When Uncle Cliff had his accident, George was sure Aunt Daisy would cancel the trip.

From "I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912" by Lauren Tarshis

In effect, the surrounding electrons form a cloud that "screens," or cancels out, the magnetism of the atom.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 10, 2026

Plus: Know your rights as a passenger — and what you’re entitled to if an airline cancels your flight for any reason.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026

After the video’s release, ABC cancels Paul’s season of “The Bachelorette.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 30, 2026

Evans also told the court that an article with the headline "Sick Elton cancels more tour dates" in November 2009 followed a statement on his website.

From BBC ● Feb. 6, 2026

And so it does and so it will until some other accident cancels it.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck

It worked, and the city canceled the Eid celebration.

From Slate ● Nov. 2, 2026

With the winter meetings in December expected to be canceled because of a lockout, GM meetings likely will be the one time for baseball operations leaders to all gather under the same roof this offseason.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026

Previously, any months spent in forbearance didn’t count toward the 120 needed for a borrower to have their debt canceled under the program.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 30, 2026

Kalshi said its markets offer unique data distinct from polling, that probabilities do not guarantee outcomes and that efforts to manipulate odds are canceled out by other buyers.

From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026

The ladies’ auxiliary of the Rotary Club canceled the azalea contest which was to be held in the gymnasium of the high school.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

On the surface, there were no signs that you were incompatible: no unkind remarks, no competitiveness, no constant canceling or being constantly late.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 25, 2026

Earlier this month, Australian data-center operator Firmus Grid cited market volatility in canceling a planned IPO of almost $5 billion that would have been the country’s largest in nearly 30 years.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

Singh said canceling the commercial driver licenses reduced the pool of immigrant drivers, forcing him to pay more to attract American drivers — an increase from $0.45 to $0.80 per mile for a driver.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

Dots are OpenAI’s answer to the current craze around AI agents designed to make users’ lives easier by handling tasks like scheduling trips or canceling subscriptions.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026

In some cases, we will find that Eratosthenes was prescient in his thinking; in others, that he was sloppy or mistaken, but that his errors had the fortuitous effect of canceling each other out.

From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro

"It's tedious to get up early, wait, and then see your train cancelled, but it's understandable there's a strike," she said.

From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026

The so-called "family photo" would usually include representatives from all nations in attendance, but this year it was cancelled.

From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026

The FIFAe Finals, an esports tournament series organised by Fifa, should have taken place in Jeddah last month but was cancelled.

From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026

While Bolsonaro's Brazilian passport and diplomatic passport had been cancelled, he also holds an Italian passport, which he used to board a private jet in Argentina, according to a flight document seen by AFP.

From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026

“I know. That’s why I’ve cancelled every dome event.”

From "Warcross" by Marie Lu

The ministry also said it would bring changes to the school calendar, including cancelling holidays, to make up for classes missed because of the strike.

From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026

Muse, Instinct and agents like them promise to make your life easier by planning vacations, sorting calendars and cancelling subscription plans.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026

In a pulsating opening 25 minutes, England were twice required to come from behind, with tries from Claudia Moloney-MacDonald and Hannah Botterman cancelling out scores by Lizzie Gibson and DaLeaka Menin for Canada.

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

She said cancelling surgeries was "absolutely the right thing to do".

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026

But what if you could arrange the waves so that reflecting waves, instead of cancelling out the new waves, would reinforce them?

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones

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Related Words

• abolish
• abort
• annul
• break off
• cut
• destroy
• eliminate
• kill
• remove
• repeal
• rescind
• revoke
• wipe out

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