can
auxiliary verb
to be able to; have the ability, power, or skill to.
can
1 American
[kan, kuhn]
/ kæn, kən /
auxiliary verb
-
can,
present (3rd person singular)
-
could
past
-
to be able to; have the ability, power, or skill to.
She can solve the problem easily, I'm sure.
-
to know how to.
He can play chess, although he's not particularly good at it.
-
to have the power or means to.
A dictator can impose his will on the people.
-
to have the right or qualifications to.
He can change whatever he wishes in the script.
-
may; have permission to.
Can I speak to you for a moment?
-
to have the possibility.
A coin can land on either side.
verb (used with or without object)
-
can,
present (3rd person singular)
-
could,
past, past participle
-
cunning
present participle
can
2
American
[kan]
/ kæn /
noun
-
cans
plural
-
a sealed container for food, beverages, etc., as of aluminum, sheet iron coated with tin, or other metal.
a can of soup.
-
a receptacle for garbage, ashes, etc..
a trash can.
-
a bucket, pail, or other container for holding or carrying liquids.
water can.
-
a drinking cup; tankard.
-
a metal or plastic container for holding film on cores or reels.
-
Slang. jail.
He's been in the can for a week.
-
Slang: Sometimes Vulgar. buttocks.
-
Slang. cans, a set of headphones designed to cover the ears.
-
Military Slang.
-
a depth charge.
-
a destroyer.
-
verb (used with object)
canned,
canning
-
to preserve by sealing in a can, jar, etc.
-
Slang. to dismiss; fire.
-
Slang. to throw (something) away.
-
Slang. to put a stop to.
Can that noise!
-
to record, as on film or tape.
idioms
-
carry the can, to take the responsibility.
-
in the can, recorded on film; completed.
The movie is in the can and ready for release.
can.
3
American
abbreviation
-
canceled.
-
canon.
-
canto.
Can.
4
American
abbreviation
-
Canada.
-
Canadian.
can
1
British
/ kæn /
noun
-
a container, esp for liquids, usually of thin sheet metal
a petrol can
beer can
-
another name (esp US) for tin
-
Also called: canful. the contents of a can or the amount a can will hold
-
a slang word for prison
-
a slang word for toilet or buttocks See toilet
-
navy a slang word for destroyer
-
slang navy a depth charge
-
a shallow cylindrical metal container of varying size used for storing and handling film
-
informal a complicated problem
-
See carry
-
-
(of a film, piece of music, etc) having been recorded, processed, edited, etc
-
informal arranged or agreed
the contract is almost in the can
-
verb
-
to put (food, etc) into a can or cans; preserve in a can
-
slang (tr) to dismiss from a job
-
informal (tr) to stop (doing something annoying or making an annoying noise) (esp in the phrase can it! )
-
informal (tr) to reject or discard
can
2
British
/ kæn, kən /
verb
-
used as an auxiliary to indicate ability, skill, or fitness to perform a task
I can run a mile in under four minutes
-
used as an auxiliary to indicate permission or the right to something
can I have a drink?
-
used as an auxiliary to indicate knowledge of how to do something
he can speak three languages fluently
-
used as an auxiliary to indicate the possibility, opportunity, or likelihood
my trainer says I can win the race if I really work hard
Can.
3
British
abbreviation
-
Canada
-
Canadian
can
More Idioms
Usage
Can but and cannot but are formal and now somewhat old-fashioned expressions suggesting that there is no possible alternative to doing something. Can but is equivalent to can only: We can but do our best. Cannot but is the equivalent of cannot help but: We cannot but protest against these injustices. See also help.
Commonly Confused
Can1 and may1 are frequently but not always interchangeable in senses indicating possibility: A power failure can (or may ) occur at any time. Despite the insistence by some, that can means only “to be able” and may means “to be permitted,” both are regularly used in seeking or granting permission: Can (or May ) I borrow your glue gun? You can (or may ) use it tomorrow. Sentences using can occur chiefly in spoken English. May in this sense occurs more frequently in formal contexts: May I address the court, Your Honor? In negative constructions, can't or cannot is more common than may not : You can't have it today. I need it myself. The contraction mayn't is rare.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
cansimple
-
have couldperfect
-
has couldperfect
-
am cunningprogressive
-
are cunningprogressive
-
is cunningprogressive
-
have been cunningperfect progressive
-
has been cunningperfect progressive
Past
-
couldsimple
-
had couldperfect
-
was cunningprogressive
-
were cunningprogressive
-
had been cunningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of can1
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English, present indicative singular 1st, 3rd person of cunnan “to know, know how”; cognate with German, Old Norse, Gothic kann; see ken, know 1
Origin of can2
First recorded before 1000; Middle English canne, can(e), Old English canne, cognate with German Kanne, Old Norse kanna, all perhaps from West Germanic; compare Late Latin canna “small vessel”
Explanation
A can is a metal container, usually cylindrical in shape, which has an airtight seal when it's new. All kinds of goods come in cans, from fruit and vegetables to paint and oil. The verb can means to preserve food in a can or glass jar. If your garden produces more tomatoes than you can possibly eat, you might make salsa and can it to eat all winter long. Can is also a slang word with several meanings. It means rear end, toilet, and it also means to fire someone: "Watch out, the boss canned three people yesterday! You could be next."
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.
See Examples For:
It can also go to court to recognise a debt exists and recover it using a liability order.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Shelters displayed QR codes so that those affected can report missing relatives or damage to their homes.
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
“What he can do is understand who this individual is fundamentally at their core,” Pierre says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
Symptoms of Ebola, which are similar to the flu or malaria, include fever, headache and tiredness, and can begin suddenly within two to 21 days of infection.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Finally, Joey can hear all the symphonies she wants.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
“We need to get sick people out of their communities as fast as we can. We are doing our best to work with local leaders; otherwise, they will continue infecting others,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Asked if his team can continue to climb, Vonnahme said, “I think we can. But most importantly, we have to try. Everybody wants us to continue to elevate.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
"You try to offer support as much as you can. You want to be close to those who are suffering. You notice a lot of sadness and despair."
From Barron's ● Jul. 5, 2026
"I've done all I can. It hurts not to be a champion."
From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026
“Roz listens to us, and treats us with love and kindness, and she makes our lives as comfortable as she possibly can. We certainly will miss her when she’s gone.”
From "The Wild Robot Escapes" by Peter Brown
When the apartment finally went quiet, I opened my Notes app and typed: “You. Can. Have. It. All.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2025
Max Dufour Montreal, Can., backside 360 kickflip tail grab to fakie 3.
From Time Magazine Archive
Can., 56., says that by the canon law, he that is archipresbyter is also called dean.
From Notes and Queries, Number 231, April 1, 1854 A Medium of Inter-communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc. by George Bell
If, however, there is soreness of the throat, redness and soreness of the tonsils, palate, and fauces, or soreness of the larynx, with hoarseness, Arum triphyllum and Hydrastus Can. are the surest remedies.
From An Epitome of the Homeopathic Healing Art Containing the New Discoveries and Improvements to the Present Time by B. L. (Benjamin L.) Hill
Salt and brackish places, on the coast from Can. to Va., along the Great Lakes, and far westward.—Var. littoràle, Gray.
From The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Asa Gray
Some German sources report that the explosive was Semtex, which contains RDX - the explosive found in the food cans in a Lithuanian cemetery.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
Unable to find work or pay to see a doctor, he has resorted to recycling cans and bottles to support himself.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
I ditched the cans, not because I’m an angel about what I ingest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
Fellow tourist Vladislav, who arrived by road from the Russian region of Krasnodar, said he had brought jerry cans filled with petrol in case he was unable to find fuel.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
“Fine, if you’re going to be hysterical,” he said, and marched to the row of garbage cans.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
“It blows my mind that people could be so cruel,” she told the New York Times.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
It said enforcement action could be complex and it must follow statutory processes.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
A potential play by China’s biggest cosmetics company could signal the arrival of “C-Beauty.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
“I could see myself in this role. … Did I know anything about Green Lantern? I did not.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
“I get that. We did a whole section on the Holocaust last year. I could actually feel my heart breaking, just reading about all the horrific things that happened.”
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
Telemachus was so young when his father left for the Trojan wars that he doesn't remember him - except through the already mythical stories told about his exploits, cunning and bravery.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
He is cunning, not intelligent — something he unwittingly proves every time he claims that passing a basic mental competency test shows his brilliance.
From Salon ● Jul. 6, 2026
In the aughts, Chase also appeared in more than 20 episodes of the Fox sitcom “Oliver Beene” and over 30 episodes of HBO’s Emmy-nominated Mormon family drama “Big Love” as cunning teenager Rhonda Volmer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026
"King George, as you know, never set foot in America. And please rest assured, ladies and gentlemen, I am not here as part of some cunning rearguard action."
From Barron's ● Apr. 29, 2026
Chess was practically the Russian national sport, and Khrushchev relished the chess-like aspects of his job, the cunning calculation of moves and countermoves.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
Keep foods like dried and canned beans, canned tomatoes, tinned fish, olive oil, and a variety of whole grains on hand so you always have something to cook with.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 16, 2026
"This isn't just a brand campaign for a new sparkling canned drink. It's the people who are supposed to be running the country," wrote The Times's social media editor, Esme Hewitt.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
Captain Morgan’s labels, meanwhile, have lost “the color and vibrancy and vitality of this brand,” O’Keeffe said, while line extensions like canned Slice Coladas suffer from a diluted master-brand identity:
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
The show, meanwhile, suggests that ordinary Americans priced out of meat try fish — any fish, even canned.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
Earlier visitors to the shelter had left behind an assortment of canned foods—beans, corn, Spam, baby carrots—which were lined up carefully along one of the support rafters.
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
Although these parasites had been killed during the canning process and would not harm consumers, they hold valuable scientific information.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 1, 2026
Chicken of the Sea International is studying whether the ruling could help revive production at a Georgia canning plant that relies on imported tuna.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 22, 2026
Like many canners, Dash relies on canning to make ends meet, but it is not his only income.
From Slate ● Nov. 27, 2024
For example, banana puree made from really ripe bananas can be stored for up to 14 days at 4°C. You can use freezing, blanching, fermentation and canning for most vegetables.
From Salon ● May 28, 2024
“I’m getting every single one of those dang canning jars out of your room.”
From "Wish" by Barbara O'Connor
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.
