can
verb · noun
Simple meaning
To know how to.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
kanIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈkæn
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
auxiliary verbdefective
To know how to; to be able to.
modal auxiliary verbdefective
May; to be permitted or enabled to.
“You can go outside and play when you're finished with your homework. Can I use your pen?”
To preserve by heating and sealing in a jar or can.
“They spent August canning fruit and vegetables.”
To discard, scrap or terminate (an idea, project, etc.).
“He canned the whole project because he thought it would fail.”
To shut up.
noun
A more or less cylindrical vessel for liquids, usually of steel or aluminium, but sometimes of plastic, and with a carrying handle over the top.
A container used to carry and dispense water for plants (a watering can).
A chimney pot.
USslang
A chamber pot, now a toilet or lavatory.
“Bob's in the can. You can wait a few minutes or just leave it with me.”
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A1 · Beginner (estimated)
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: (auxiliary verb, defective) To know how to; to be able to.
Used this way, can is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Nearby words
- get , more casual, better suited to speech than writing
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
How It’s Used
The word’s distinct uses, one example each.
Permittedverb
“You can go outside and play when you're finished with your homework. Can I use your pen?”
Preserveverb
“They spent August canning fruit and vegetables.”
Discardverb
“He canned the whole project because he thought it would fail.”
Chambernoun
“Bob's in the can. You can wait a few minutes or just leave it with me.”
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Antonyms
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API (CC BY-SA 3.0). Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.