canvas

[kan-vuhs]

noun

1. a closely woven, heavy cloth of cotton, hemp, or linen, used for tents, sails, etc.

2. a piece of this or similar material on which a painting is made.

3. a painting on canvas.

4. a tent, or tents collectively.

5. sailcloth.

6. sails collectively.

7. any fabric of linen, cotton, or hemp of a coarse loose weave used as a foundation for embroidery stitches, interlining, etc.

8. the floor of a boxing ring traditionally consisting of a canvas covering stretched over a mat.

Trademark, Digital Technology.

1. Canvas, the brand name for an open-source learning management system, launched in 2011.

canvas

/ ˈkænvəs /

noun

1. 1. a heavy durable cloth made of cotton, hemp, or jute, used for sails, tents, etc

   2. ( as modifier )

      a canvas bag

2. 1. a piece of canvas or a similar material on which a painting is done, usually in oils

   2. a painting on this material, esp in oils

3. a tent or tents collectively

4. nautical any cloth of which sails are made

5. nautical the sails of a vessel collectively

6. any coarse loosely woven cloth on which embroidery, tapestry, etc, is done

7. the floor of a boxing or wrestling ring

8. rowing the tapering covered part at either end of a racing boat, sometimes referred to as a unit of length

   to win by a canvas

9. 1. in tents

   2. nautical with sails unfurled

Other Word Forms

• canvaslike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of canvas¹

First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English canevas, from Anglo-French, Old North French, from unattested Vulgar Latin cannabāceus (noun use of adjective), equivalent to Latin cannab(is) + -āceus; hemp, -aceous

Word History and Origins

Origin of canvas¹

C14: from Norman French canevas, ultimately from Latin cannabis hemp

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. under canvas,

   1. Nautical. with set sails.

   2. in tents; in the field.

      the troops under canvas.

Example Sentences

"It represents a great canvas to restore nature in that beautiful landscape."

Read more on BBC

Less than 24 hours after a shattering 18-inning game three loss, the Blue Jays climbed off the canvas to breathe new life into their hopes of a first Major League Baseball title in 32 years.

Read more on Barron's

Spirituality takes on previously unconsidered valences in the canvases of Wally Hedrick and Carlos Villa.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Imagine pouring paint on a spinning canvas - it makes swirly patterns.

Read more on Space Scoop

Horizontal lines of layered color formed by the artist’s marching footprints, tracked across the canvases, create unruly waves, their shapes sometimes suggesting schools of fish.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• art 
• artwork 
• picture 
• piece 
• portrait 
• watercolor