Cant - English meaning

noun

The space (usually measured in degrees) between two intersecting lines or surfaces at or close to the point where they meet.

Usage examples:

In any triangle, the longest side is opposite the largest angle

verb

Direct or incline at an angle.

Usage examples:

He angled his chair so that he could watch her

noun

A fish hook.

Usage examples:

You will be pleased too, if you find a trout at one of our angles

noun

The jargon or slang of a particular group or class.

Usage examples:

Teenage argot

noun

Words and expressions that are used by small groups of people and that are not easily understood by other people

Usage examples:

Thieves' argot

noun

The land alongside or sloping down to a river or lake.

Usage examples:

Willows lined the bank of the stream

verb

Heap (a substance) into a mass or mound.

Usage examples:

The rain banked the soil up behind the gate

verb

Deposit (money or valuables) in a bank.

Usage examples:

She may have banked a cheque in the wrong account

noun

The back part of the human foot below the ankle.

Usage examples:

Knees are bent and held in front of the chest, with the heels positioned below the hips.

verb

Fit or renew a heel on (a shoe or boot).

Usage examples:

They were soling and heeling heavy working boots

exclamation

A command to a dog to walk close behind its owner.

Usage examples:

‘heel’ i said and rusty obeyed.

noun

Deceptive or false talk or behaviour.

Usage examples:

His comments are sheer humbug

verb

Deceive; trick.

Usage examples:

Poor dave is easily humbugged

noun

Dishonest talk, writing, or behaviour that is intended to deceive people

Usage examples:

The usual political humbug, i know humbug when i see it., her arguments are impeccable and she has …

noun

The practice of claiming to have higher standards or more noble beliefs than is the case.

Usage examples:

His target was the hypocrisy of suburban life

noun

Pretending to be what you are not, or pretending to believe something that you do not

Usage examples:

Critics are accusing him of hypocrisy and deceit., the biggest hypocrites in sports are owners who …

noun

A group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the individual words (e.g. over the moon, see the light ).

noun

A group of words whose meaning considered as a unit is different from the meanings of each word considered separately

Usage examples:

Mastering the use of idioms can be hard for a learner., “shoot yourself in the foot” is an idiom th…

noun

A person's natural tendency or urge to act or feel in a particular way; a disposition.

Usage examples:

John was a scientist by training and inclination

noun

A preference or tendency, or a feeling that makes a person want to do something

Usage examples:

Tony has a strong inclination toward the arts., if i were in your situation, my inclination would b…

verb

Be favourably disposed towards or willing to do something.

Usage examples:

He was inclined to accept the offer

noun

An inclined surface or plane; a slope, especially on a road or railway.

Usage examples:

The road climbs a long incline through a forest

noun

The quality of not expressing genuine feelings.

Usage examples:

He had no patience for anything that smacked of insincerity or hypocrisy

noun

The action or practice of pretending to feel something that you do not really feel, or not meaning what you say

Usage examples:

There’s often a bit of insincerity in these speeches., jane detected the insincerity in his voice.

noun

Special words or expressions used by a profession or group that are difficult for others to understand.

Usage examples:

Legal jargon

noun

A translucent, colourless, or smoky gem variety of zircon.

Usage examples:

Rings set with jargons and pearls

noun

Words and phrases used by particular groups of people, esp. in their work, that are not generally understood

Usage examples:

Technical jargon, legal/computer jargon

noun

The principal method of human communication, consisting of words used in a structured and conventional way and conveyed by speech, writing, or gesture.

Usage examples:

A study of the way children learn language

noun

A system of communication by speaking, writing, or making signs in a way that can be understood, or any of the different systems of communication used in particular regions

Usage examples:

[ c ] the english language, [ c ] american sign language, [ c ] he speaks six foreign languages., […

noun

The method of human communication that uses speaking and writing, or the system of communication in speaking and writing that is used by the people of a particular country

Usage examples:

Learn/understand a language it's easier to learn a language when you're younger., speak/use a langu…

verb

Be in or move into a sloping position.

Usage examples:

He leaned back in his chair

noun

A deviation from the perpendicular; an inclination.

Usage examples:

The vehicle has a definite lean to the left

adjective

(of a person or animal) thin, especially healthily so; having no superfluous fat.

Usage examples:

His lean, muscular body

noun

A foreign language or local dialect.

Usage examples:

It doesn't matter if you can't speak the lingo

noun

Language containing slang (= informal language) or technical expressions, or a foreign language

Usage examples:

[ u ] in typical hollywood lingo, he said, "this is gonna be big."

noun

A number of connected items or names written or printed consecutively, typically one below the other.

Usage examples:

Consult the list of drugs on page 326

verb

Make a list of.

Usage examples:

I have listed four reasons below

noun

An instance of a ship listing to one side.

Usage examples:

The gallery walls are lined with marine ply, angled to give an echo of the list of a ship under sail.

noun

The dialect of a particular region, especially one with low status in relation to the standard language of the country.

Usage examples:

The nurse talked to me in a patois that even italians would have had difficulty in understanding

verb

Make a repeated light tapping sound.

Usage examples:

A flurry of rain pattered against the window

noun

A repeated light tapping.

Usage examples:

The plashing patter of steady rain

verb

Talk at length without saying anything significant.

Usage examples:

She pattered on incessantly

noun

The doctrine or practices of the pharisees, especially strict observance of the traditional and written law.

Usage examples:

Paul became a convert from pharisaism

noun

Pious sentiment, especially of an exaggerated or affected nature.

Usage examples:

As in many things, we must walk that line between legalism or pietism on the one hand and licentiou…

noun

An attempt to make something that is not the case appear true.

Usage examples:

His anger is masked by a pretence that all is well

noun

A way of behaving that is intended to deceive people

Usage examples:

She made absolutely no pretence of being interested., they kept up (= continued) a pretence of norm…

noun

A quality of acting as if you are morally better than others

Usage examples:

I found his sanctimoniousness quite irritating., a sense of smug sanctimoniousness

noun

The action or practice of acting as if one were morally superior to other people.

Usage examples:

They have no shame and turn on the phony sanctimony

noun

A thing that is not what it is purported to be.

Usage examples:

Our current free health service is a sham

adjective

Bogus; false.

Usage examples:

A clergyman who arranged a sham marriage

verb

Short for pillow sham.

noun

A type of language consisting of words and phrases that are regarded as very informal, are more common in speech than writing, and are typically restricted to a particular context or group of people.

Usage examples:

Grass is slang for marijuana

verb

Attack (someone) using abusive language.

Usage examples:

He watched ideological groups slanging one another

verb

Slope or lean in a particular direction; diverge or cause to diverge from the vertical or horizontal.

Usage examples:

A ploughed field slanted up to the skyline

noun

A sloping position.

Usage examples:

The hedge grew at a slant

adjective

Sloping.

Usage examples:

Slant pockets

noun

A surface of which one end or side is at a higher level than another; a rising or falling surface.

Usage examples:

He slithered helplessly down the slope

verb

(of a surface or line) be inclined from a horizontal or vertical line; slant up or down.

Usage examples:

The garden sloped down to a stream

noun

The expression of or the ability to express thoughts and feelings by articulate sounds.

Usage examples:

He was born deaf and without the power of speech

noun

The ability to talk, or the activity of talking

Usage examples:

People who suffer a stroke may experience a loss of speech., his speech became slurred and indistin…

noun

The body of terms used with a particular technical application in a subject of study, profession, etc.

Usage examples:

The terminology of semiotics

noun

Special words or expressions used in relation to a particular subject or activity

Usage examples:

Sports terminology, scientific terminology

verb

Move or cause to move into a sloping position.

Usage examples:

The floor tilted slightly

noun

A sloping position or movement.

Usage examples:

The tilt of her head

verb

Lean over; tip

noun

The pointed or rounded end or extremity of something slender or tapering.

Usage examples:

George pressed the tips of his fingers together

verb

Attach to or cover the end or extremity of.

Usage examples:

The peaks of the mountains were tipped with snow

noun

A place where rubbish is left.

Usage examples:

A rubbish tip

noun

The language or dialect spoken by the ordinary people in a particular country or region.

Usage examples:

He wrote in the vernacular to reach a larger audience

adjective

(of language) spoken as one's mother tongue; not learned or imposed as a second language.

Usage examples:

Instead it will become regarded historically as a document that knowingly accelerated the demise of…

noun

The form of a language commonly spoken by the people of a particular region or by a particular group, esp. when it is different from the standard language

Usage examples:

[ u ] much of his poetry derives from the american pop vernacular., a vernacular expression