canty

American  

[kan-tee, kahn-] / ˈkæn ti, ˈkɑn- /

adjective

Chiefly Scot.

1. cheerful; lively.

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canty British  

/ ˈkæntɪ, ˈkɑːn- /

adjective

1. dialect lively; brisk; in good spirits

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Other Word Forms

• cantily adverb
• cantiness noun

Etymology

Origin of canty

1715–25; < Low German kantig lively; akin to cant ³

Example Sentences

John Anderson, my jo, John, We clamb the hill thegither; And mony a canty day, John, We've had wi' ane anither.

From The Wedding Ring A Series of Discourses for Husbands and Wives and Those Contemplating Matrimony by Talmage, T. De Witt (Thomas De Witt)

Duncan was a lad o' grace; Maggie's was a piteous case; Duncan couldna be her death, Swelling pity smoor'd his wrath; Now they're crouse and canty baith: Ha, ha, the wooing o't!

From The Golden Treasury Selected from the Best Songs and Lyrical Poems in the English Language and arranged with Notes by Various

I'd as leif take it doon mysel' to Allan Ramsay's, for the sake o' the walk and the bit crack wi' the canty callant,' replied the young lady, a blush crimsoning her fair, rounded cheek.

From Allan Ramsay Famous Scots Series by Smeaton, William Henry Oliphant

Sae dainty, sae genty, sae canty an' keen, The wale o' the parish was Tipperty's Jean.

From Legends of the North; The Guidman O' Inglismill and The Fairy Bride by Buchan, Patrick

From commère comes Scot. cummer or kimmer— "A canty quean was Kate, and a special cummer of my ain."

From The Romance of Words (4th ed.) by Weekley, Ernest