canvas

American  

[kan-vuhs] / ˈkæn vəs /

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.

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Trademark, Digital Technology.

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

idioms

1. under canvas,

   1. Nautical. with set sails.

   2. in tents; in the field.

      the troops under canvas.

canvas British  

/ 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

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Other Word Forms

• canvaslike adjective

Etymology

Origin of canvas

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

Example Sentences

The artist’s intimate 1929 canvas, from her first stay in New Mexico, seems to gaze up at a towering tree with awe and fascination.

From The Wall Street Journal

“Space,” he writes, “remains an open canvas of possibilities: not merely a source of wonder and strategic importance, but also a reflection of who we are, and perhaps what we may become.”

From The Wall Street Journal

There almost everything serves as a canvas, including painted trash doubling as decor and the silkscreened couch on which he’s seated.

From Los Angeles Times

For three decades, Banksy has challenged authority, mocked consumer culture and transformed public spaces into poignant canvases - while keeping his true identity hidden from the world.

From BBC

We rode there on a Liberty Truck, jostling in the back under a canopy of canvas.

From Literature

Related Words

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