canon
English
Etymology 1
From Middle English canoun, from Old French canon and Old English canon, both from Latin canōn, from Ancient Greek κανών (kanṓn, “measuring rod, standard”), akin to κάννα (kánna, “reed”), from Semitic (compare Hebrew קָנֶה (qane, “reed”) and Arabic قَنَاة (qanāh, “reed”)). Doublet of qanun. See also cane, cannon, canyon, canal.
Pronunciation
- enPR: kăn'ən, IPA(key): /ˈkæn.ən/
Audio (UK) (file)
- Rhymes: -ænən
- Homophone: cannon
Noun
![](Images/wiktionary/Bury_St_Johns_Church_4.JPG.webp)
canon (countable and uncountable, plural canons)
- A generally accepted principle; a rule.
- The trial must proceed according to the canons of law.
- c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act I, scene ii]:
- Or that the Everlasting had not fixed His canon 'gainst self-slaughter.
- a formally codified set of criteria deemed mandatory for a particular artistic style of figurative art.
- the Canon of Polykleitos
- 1975, Richard Tobin, “The Canon of Polykleitos”, in American Journal of Archaeology, volume 79, number 4, DOI: , JSTOR 503064, retrieved 2 October 2020, pages 307–321:
- Despite the many advances made by modern scholars towards a clearer comprehension of the theoretical basis of the Canon of Polykleitos, the results of these studies show an absence of any general agreement upon the practical application of that canon in works of art.
- A group of literary works that are generally accepted as representing a field.
- 2015, William Styron, "Irwin Shaw", in My Generation: Collected Nonfiction, page 456
- the durable canon of American short fiction
- 2015, William Styron, "Irwin Shaw", in My Generation: Collected Nonfiction, page 456
- The works of a writer that have been accepted as authentic.
- the entire Shakespearean canon
- A eucharistic prayer, particularly the Roman Canon.
- A religious law or body of law decreed by the church.
- We must proceed according to canon law.
- A catalogue of saints acknowledged and canonized in the Roman Catholic Church.
- In monasteries, a book containing the rules of a religious order.
- A piece of music in which the same melody is played by different voices, but beginning at different times; a round.
- Pachelbel’s Canon has become very popular.
- (Roman law) A rent or stipend payable at some regular time, generally annual, e.g., canon frumentarius
- 1919 January 1, Charles P. Sherman, “A Brief History of Imperial Roman Canon Law”, in California Law Review, volume 7, number 2, Berkeley, California: University of California, pages 96-97:
- The lessees of public lands had to pay a perpetual rent or "canon" at some periodical time.
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- (fandom slang, uncountable) Those sources, especially including literary works, which are considered part of the main continuity regarding a given fictional universe.
- A spin-off book series revealed the aliens to be originally from Earth, but it's not canon.
- 2014, Phineas and Ferb: Star Wars
- Meanwhile, having learned the whereabouts of the Death Star's plans, the rebels send their best platypus agent to obtain them, in hopes of finding a weakness. And none of this is canon, so just relax.
- (cooking) A rolled and filleted loin of meat; also called a cannon.
- a canon of beef or lamb
- (printing, dated, uncountable) A large size of type formerly used for printing the church canons, standardized as 48-point.
- The part of a bell by which it is suspended; the ear or shank of a bell[1].
Synonyms
- (48-point type): French canon
Derived terms
- canon bit
- canon bone
- canonic
- canonical
- canonicity
- canonisation, canonization
- canonise, canonize
- canonist
- canon law
- crab canon
- deuterocanonical
- double canon
- fanon
- headcanon
- minor canon
- Morgan's canon
- non-canon
- noncanonical
- protocanonical
- soft canon
Translations
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Adjective
canon (comparative more canon, superlative most canon)
- (fandom slang) Clipping of canonical.
- Antonym: non-canon
- The franchise's book spinoff is usually not considered canon.
Etymology 3
From Middle English canoun, ultimately from Latin canonicus (either by shortening or back-formation from Old English canonic, or via Old Northern French canoine).
Noun
canon (plural canons)
- A clergy member serving a cathedral or collegiate church.
- A canon regular, a member of any of several Roman Catholic religious orders.
Derived terms
- Canonbury
- Canons Park
- Stoke Canon
- canoness
Translations
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Noun
canon (plural canons)
- Alternative spelling of qanun
Noun
canon (plural canons)
- (obsolete, now a misspelling) Alternative spelling of cannon (“weapon”)
- Alternative spelling of cannon (“a carom in billiards”)
Further reading
- 1874, Edward H. Knight, American Mechanical Dictionary
- Douglas Harper (2001–2023), “canon”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
- “canon”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
Anagrams
- Ancon, Conan, ancon
Dutch
Etymology
From Ancient Greek κανών (kanṓn, “measuring rod, standard”), akin to κάννα (kánna, “reed”), perhaps from Semitic (compare Hebrew קנה (qaneh, “reed”)).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈkaː.nɔn/
Audio (file) - Hyphenation: ca‧non
Noun
canon m (plural canons, diminutive canonnetje n)
- canon (set of representative or pre-eminent literary works)
- (chiefly Christianity) canon (set of authoritative religious books, especially those constituting the Bible)
- (Christianity) canon (religious law)
- (music) canon (round, music piece consisting of the same melody sung by different voices)
- (Roman Catholicism) canon (part of a mass following the Sanctus up to the end of the Pater Noster, consisting mostly of prayers)
- (dated) canon (principle, rule)
Derived terms
- canoniek
- canoniseren
French
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ka.nɔ̃/
audio (file)
Etymology 1
From Old French canon, from canne + -on, corresponding to Italian cannone.
Noun
canon m (plural canons)
- cannon, (big) gun
- barrel (of firearm)
- cannon for a horse
Derived terms
- boulet de canon
- canon à eau
- chair à canon
- fusil à canon scié
- poudre à canon
- tuer une mouche avec un canon
Etymology 2
From Old French canon, borrowed from Latin canōn, from Ancient Greek κανών (kanṓn, “measuring rod, standard”).
The 'attractive person' sense comes from an ellipsis of canon de beauté.
Noun
canon m (plural canons)
- canon
- (music) canon
- (religion) canon
- (slang) hottie, dish, bombshell (attractive man/woman)
- Synonyms: bombe, avion de chasse
Derived terms
- canon à neige
- canon de beauté
Descendants
- → Turkish: kanon
Etymology 3
From the above noun (see sense 4) by conversion.
Adjective
canon (plural canons)
- (informal, of a person) hot, sexy
- Cette nouvelle coupe de cheveux te va trop bien, t'es canon! ― This new hair really suits you, you're hot!
Etymology 4
canne + -on.
Noun
canon m (plural canons)
- (slang) glass of wine
Further reading
- “canon”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Latin
Pronunciation
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈka.noːn/, [ˈkänoːn]
- (Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈka.non/, [ˈkäːnon]
Etymology 1
Borrowed from Ancient Greek κανών (kanṓn, “measuring rod, standard”), akin to κάννα (kánna, “reed”), perhaps from Semitic (compare Hebrew קנה (qaneh, “reed”)).
Noun
canōn m (genitive canonis); third declension
- a measuring line
- (figuratively) precept, rule, canon
- a yearly tribute paid to the emperor; (Medieval Latin, by extension) a periodic payment
- (Ecclesiastical Latin) authorized catalog, especially of books of the Bible or of the saints
- (Ecclesiastical Latin) decree of a church synod
- (Ecclesiastical Latin) the Canon of the Mass
- (Medieval Latin) relic
Declension
Third-declension noun.
Case | Singular | Plural |
---|---|---|
Nominative | canōn | canonēs |
Genitive | canonis | canonum |
Dative | canonī | canonibus |
Accusative | canonem | canonēs |
Ablative | canone | canonibus |
Vocative | canōn | canonēs |
Synonyms
- (precept, rule): nōrma, praeceptum, rēgula
Derived terms
- canōnizō
- canōnismata
Descendants
- Italian: canone
- → Catalan: cànon
- → German: Kanon
- → Dutch: canon
- → Old French: canon (see there for further descendants)
- → Portuguese: cânone
- → Russian: канон (kanon)
- → Spanish: canon
Etymology 2
From canna (“pipe”), compare Italian cannone and Old French canon.
Noun
canōn m (genitive canōnis); third declension
- (Medieval Latin) a cannon (artillery)
References
- “canon”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- canon in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
- canon in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette
- “canon”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898) Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
- “canon”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890) A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin
- Niermeyer, Jan Frederik (1976), “canon”, in Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden, Boston: E. J. Brill
Middle English
Etymology 1
From Middle French canon, from Italian cannone, from Latin canna, from Ancient Greek κάννα (kánna, “reed”), from Akkadian 𒄀 (qanû, “reed”), from Sumerian 𒄀𒈾 (gi.na).
Alternative forms
- kanon
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /kaˈnoːn/
Noun
canon (plural canones)
- (Late Middle English) cannon
Descendants
- English: cannon
References
- “canọ̄n, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
Noun
canon
- Alternative form of canoun (“authoritative rules”)
Noun
canon
- Alternative form of canoun (“clergy member”)
Norman
Etymology
From Old French canon.
Noun
canon m (plural canons)
- cannon
Old French
Etymology 1
canne + -on, corresponding to Italian cannone.
Noun
canon m (oblique plural canons, nominative singular canons, nominative plural canon)
- tube
- cannon
Etymology 2
Borrowed from Latin canōn, from Ancient Greek κανών (kanṓn, “measuring rod, standard”).
- canon
Descendants
- French: canon
- Norman: canon
- → Danish: kanon
- → Irish: canóin
- → Middle English: canoun, canon, canone, kanon, kanoun
- English: canon
- Scots: canon
- → Norwegian: kanon
- → Swedish: kanon
- → Finnish: kaanon
Romanian
Etymology
Borrowed from Ancient Greek κανών (kanṓn), possibly partly through a South Slavic language intermediate.
Noun
canon n (plural canoane)
- canon
- (usually in regards to religion) tenet, dogma, rule, norm, precept
- punishment or penance for breaking such a religious rule
Declension
singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
indefinite articulation | definite articulation | indefinite articulation | definite articulation | |
nominative/accusative | (un) canon | canonul | (niște) canoane | canoanele |
genitive/dative | (unui) canon | canonului | (unor) canoane | canoanelor |
vocative | canonule | canoanelor |
Derived terms
- canoni
Related terms
- canonic
Spanish
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin canōn[1], from Ancient Greek κανών (kanṓn, “measuring rod, standard”) (compare κάννα (kánna, “reed”)), perhaps of Semitic origin.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈkanon/ [ˈka.nõn]
- Rhymes: -anon
- Syllabification: ca‧non
Noun
canon m (plural cánones)
- canon (principle, literary works, prayer, religious law, music piece)
- Synonyms: norma, precepto, regla
- tax, fee
Related terms
- canónico
- canonizar
References
- Joan Coromines; José A. Pascual (1983–1991) Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico (in Spanish), Madrid: Gredos
Further reading
- “canon”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014
Welsh
Alternative forms
- (verb form): canasom (literary, first-person plural)
- (verb form): canasant (literary, third-person plural)
- (artillery): canan
Pronunciation
- (North Wales) IPA(key): /ˈkanɔn/
- (South Wales) IPA(key): /ˈkaːnɔn/, /ˈkanɔn/
Etymology 1
From English canon, from Latin canōn, from Ancient Greek κανών (kanṓn, “measuring rod, standard”).
Noun
canon f (plural cannonau)
- canon (ecclesiastical degree)
Noun
canon m (plural canoniaid or canons)
- canon (clerical)
Etymology 2
Borrowed from English cannon, from Italian cannone, from Latin canna (“reed”).
Noun
canon m (plural cannonau)
- cannon
Derived terms
- pelen canon f (“cannonball”)
Etymology 3
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Verb
canon
- first/third-person plural preterite colloquial of canu
Mutation
Welsh mutation | |||
---|---|---|---|
radical | soft | nasal | aspirate |
canon | ganon | nghanon | chanon |
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs. |
Further reading
- R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “canon”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies