Jump To:

• cain
  cain

  noun

  rent paid in kind, especially a percentage of a farm crop.
• Cain
  Cain

  noun

  (in the Bible) the first son of Adam and Eve, who murdered his brother Abel.

cain

¹ American  

[keyn] / keɪn /

Scot., kane

noun

Scot. and Irish English.

1. rent paid in kind, especially a percentage of a farm crop.

---

Cain ² American  

[keyn] / keɪn /

noun

1. (in the Bible) the first son of Adam and Eve, who murdered his brother Abel.

2. a murderer.

---

idioms

1. raise Cain,

   1. become angry or violent.

      He'll raise Cain when he finds out I lost his watch.

   2. to behave in a boisterous manner; cause a disturbance.

      The students raised Cain while the teacher was out.

Cain ³ American  

[keyn] / keɪn /

noun

1. James M., 1892–1977, U.S. novelist.

---

Cain ¹ British  

/ keɪn /

noun

1. the first son of Adam and Eve, who killed his brother Abel (Genesis 4:1–16)

2. 1. to cause a commotion

   2. to react or protest heatedly

---

cain ² British  

/ keɪn /

noun

1. history (in Scotland and Ireland) payment in kind, usually farm produce paid as rent

---

Cain More Idioms  

1. see raise Cain.

---

Other Word Forms

• Cainism
  noun
• Cainitic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of cain

Middle English ( Scots ) cane, from Scots Gaelic; compare Old Irish cáin “statute, law, rent”

Example Sentences

Veda’s story unfolds in “Mildred Pierce,” the classic James M. Cain novel and 1945 Joan Crawford film.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 29, 2026

“Half of college graduates in New York City are either foreign born or come from immigrant households,” Miller told Fox’s Will Cain.

From Salon • Jun. 27, 2026

An adaptation of the 1941 novel by James M. Cain, directed by Michael Curtiz, the film was nominated for five Academy Awards, including best picture, with Crawford winning for her lead performance.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 27, 2026

Cain played for Championship side Coventry City FC before moving into reality TV and podcasting.

From BBC • Jun. 18, 2026

The other competitors remained mostly quiet—save for Cain and Verin—and many of them were pale as snow.

From "Throne of Glass" by Sarah J. Maas