-
Can (verb)
To know how to; to be able to.
“She can speak English, French, and German.”
“I can play football.”
“Can you remember your fifth birthday?”
-
Can (verb)
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?”
-
Can (verb)
To have the potential to; be possible.
“Can it be Friday already?”
“Teenagers can really try their parents’ patience.”
“Animals can experience emotions.”
-
Can (verb)
(auxiliary verb, defective) Used with verbs of perception.
-
Can (verb)
To seal in a can.
“They canned air to sell as a novelty to tourists.”
-
Can (verb)
To preserve by heating and sealing in a jar or can.
“They spent August canning fruit and vegetables.”
-
Can (verb)
To discard, scrap or terminate (an idea, project, etc.).
“He canned the whole project because he thought it would fail.”
-
Can (verb)
To shut up.
“Can your gob.”
-
Can (verb)
To fire or dismiss an employee.
“The boss canned him for speaking out.”
-
Can (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.
-
Can (noun)
A container used to carry and dispense water for plants (a watering can).
-
Can (noun)
A tin-plate canister, often cylindrical, for preserved foods such as fruit, meat, or fish.
-
Can (noun)
A chamber pot, now a toilet or lavatory.
“Shit or get off the can.”
“Bob’s in the can. You can wait a few minutes or just leave it with me.”
-
Can (noun)
Buttocks.
-
Can (noun)
Jail or prison.
“Bob’s in the can. He won’t be back for a few years.”
-
Can (noun)
Headphones.
-
Can (noun)
A drinking cup.
-
Can (noun)
A cube-shaped buoy or marker used to denote a port-side lateral mark
-
Can (noun)
A chimney pot.
-
Could (verb)
conditional of can
-
Could (verb)
Used as a past subjunctive (contrary to fact).
“I think he could do it if he really wanted to.”
“I wish I could fly!”
-
Could (verb)
Used to politely ask for permission to do something.
“Could I borrow your coat?”
-
Could (verb)
Used to politely ask for someone else to do something.
“Could you proofread this email?”
-
Could (verb)
Used to show the possibility that something might happen.
“We could rearrange the time if you like.”
-
Could (noun)
Something that could happen, or could be the case, under different circumstances; a potentiality.
-
Can (verb)
be able to
“he can’t afford it”
“they can run fast”
“I could hear footsteps”
-
Can (verb)
be able to through acquired knowledge or skill
“I can speak Italian”
-
Can (verb)
have the opportunity or possibility to
“there are many ways holidaymakers can take money abroad”
-
Can (verb)
used to express doubt or surprise about the possibility of something’s being the case
“where can she have gone?”
“he can’t have finished”
-
Can (verb)
used to indicate that something is typically the case
“he could be very moody”
“antique clocks can seem out of place in modern homes”
-
Can (verb)
be permitted to
“you can use the phone if you want to”
“nobody could legally drink on the premises”
-
Can (verb)
used to request someone to do something
“can you open the window?”
“can’t you leave me alone?”
-
Can (verb)
used to make a suggestion or offer
“we can have another drink if you like”
-
Can (verb)
preserve (food) in a can
“sardines and anchovies are worth the extra money if canned in olive oil”
-
Can (verb)
dismiss from a job
“he was canned because of a tiff over promotion”
-
Can (verb)
reject as inadequate
“they canned the project”
-
Can (noun)
a cylindrical metal container
“a can of paint”
“a petrol can”
-
Can (noun)
a small steel or aluminium container in which food or drink is hermetically sealed for storage over long periods
“a beer can”
-
Can (noun)
the quantity of food or drink held by a can
“he drank two cans of lager”
-
Can (noun)
prison
“our friends will get a year or two in the can”
-
Can (noun)
the toilet
“she walks in and has to use the can”
-
Can (noun)
headphones.
-
Can (noun)
a woman’s breasts.
-
Could (verb)
past of can
-
Could (verb)
used to indicate possibility
“I would go if I could afford it”
“they could be right”
-
Could (verb)
used in making suggestions or polite requests
“could I use the phone?”
“you could always ring him up”
-
Could (verb)
used to indicate annoyance because of something that has not been done
“they could have told me!”
-
Could (verb)
used to indicate a strong inclination to do something
“he irritates me so much that I could scream”