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.
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.
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.
carry the can, to take the responsibility.
in the can, recorded on film; completed.
The movie is in the can and ready for release.
canceled.
canon.
canto.
Canada.
Canadian.
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
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
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
Canada
Canadian
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.
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.
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
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”
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."
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The six 154-foot fast-response cutters are part of the Coast Guard’s reimagined “expeditionary cutter squadron,” which can be sent anywhere in the world.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
“The thing is, I never subscribed. America can be a One Eyed Jack, but I’ve seen your other side.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
The brand's most ardent supporters "have a lot of faith that she can deliver on some of these promises longer-term", he says, but there's "still a ton of scepticism" outside the fanbase.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
Three said they had contracted scabies—a skin disease associated with inadequate sanitary conditions that can become fatal if untreated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
They study enemy troops from the relative safety of their homes and write down as much information as they can.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
"I try to be as authentic as I can. I believe in being genuine," Eala said.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
It reads: “It’s like an AP honors U.S. history book packed onto a can. Not a tiny Euro can… an American-size 16oz can!”
From Slate ● Jun. 16, 2026
“If you’re out there and able to help in any way no matter how big or small please do. Check in on your neighbors. Give what you can. Spread aloha,” he concluded the post.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 30, 2026
"I tried to look out in the ocean as many times as I can. I love being out here," said Morikawa, of the delay.
From Barron's ● Feb. 15, 2026
“I have done what I can. The rest is up to you.”
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
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
Those of British Columbia, Can., gave the Provincial franchise but had not the power to give it for Dominion elections.
From The History of Woman Suffrage, Volume V by Harper, Ida Husted
Salt-marshes and shores, Can. to Ga.—Var. elòdes, Gray, slender, often low and simple; leaves thickish, long, narrowly linear, entire, the uppermost small and bract-like; scales narrow, with short and mostly spreading acutish tips.
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 Gray, Asa
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 Hill, B. L. (Benjamin L.)
Plus an assortment of quirky items including Pringles cans, Swatch watches, museum neckties and golf-course pencils.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
Lower sales volumes have made fixed costs harder to spread out, while U.S. tariffs on aluminum cans further squeezed margins, the company said.
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
Teams also use seismic and acoustic listening devices, which resemble little pots or cans on wires linked up to devices, to try to locate survivors.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
With Brunon’s guidance, they began by drawing small-scale sketches, and eventually they were dipping brushes into cans of paint.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 27, 2026
“Were you collecting milk cans again?” my mother asked me one evening when I came home stinking like a dead animal.
From Full of Beans by Jennifer L. Holm
Coast Guard ships could help make up for U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
But critics of permanent DST have noted that it would lead to darker winter mornings, which could make driving conditions more hazardous for those on the road in early hours.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
While some children's charities have welcomed the reforms as long overdue protections, others have warned they could result in children using the internet in unsafe ways.
From Barron's ● Jul. 14, 2026
Hirsch said the lawsuit showed how the alleged use of new AI tools could be exposing companies to new legal risks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
She could be wearing goddess locs, Lemonade braids, or passion twists.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
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
He was the runner-up in 2022, armed with the cunning plan of writing a good song – the 70s glam rock pastiche Space Man – and being good at performing it.
From BBC ● May 17, 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
But at least for now, it looks as if the cunning field marshal has decisively outplayed the flamboyant former cricketer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 8, 2026
Each berry sat on a cunning scarlet flower, which was left behind when the berry was picked away.
From "Miracles on Maple Hill" by Virginia Sorensen
Distillers might be reluctant to come up with a rival product because canned cocktails have lower profit margins than large bottles of spirits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
It is a frenzied, organized dance with missed steps and dropped plates and canned tuna and mayonnaise gussied up into a fancy tonnato sauce that tastes upscale and flawless to the unsuspecting.
From Salon ● Jun. 28, 2026
The two stocks will replace canned foods maker Campbell’s and swimming pool supplier Pool in the S&P 500.
From Barron's ● Jun. 8, 2026
Because it wasn’t just his statements on UFOs that got Rossetti canned.
From Slate ● Jun. 8, 2026
In 1916, before the United States entered the war, American packers exported 70 million tons of canned beef, 262 million tons of fresh beef, and more than 500 million tons of bacon.
From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield
While the canning process preserved the outer structure of the worms, it destroyed the internal features scientists would need to identify specific species.
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
Guinness 0.0 products are canned in the Belfast factory while the Runcorn facility carries out the kegging, bottling and canning of Guinness Draught products.
From BBC ● Dec. 12, 2025
I grew up on the produce she grew all year round, thanks to her canning.
From Salon ● Jun. 5, 2025
On the day of our arrival, Father and I improvised a chamber pot, sacrificing a canning jar for this purpose.
From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank
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.
