canteen

English

Drinking from a canteen or water flask of late 20th century or early 21st century design. Note the attached stopper.

Etymology

From French cantine, from Italian cantina, from Vulgar Latin canthus (“corner”), from Gaulish *cantos, denoting the location for liquor storage, from Proto-Celtic *cantos (“corner”), from Proto-Indo-European *kh₂ndʰ-. Doublet of cantina.

Pronunciation

enPR: kăn-tēnʹ
(UK, US) IPA^(key): /kænˈtiːn/, /kænˈtin/
(æ-tensing) IPA^(key): [kʰɛə̯nˈtin]
Audio (UK) (file)
Rhymes: -iːn

Noun

canteen (plural canteens)

(Can we add an example for this sense?)

A small cafeteria or snack bar, especially one in a military establishment, school, or place of work.
A temporary or mobile café used in an emergency or on a film location etc.
A box with compartments for storing eating utensils, silverware etc.
A military mess kit.
A water bottle, flask, or other vessel, typically used by a soldier or camper as a bottle for carrying water or liquor for drink
- 1862, John Williamson Palmer, Stonewall Jackson's Way :
  Come, stack arms, Men! Pile on the rails; stir up the campfire bright; no matter if the canteen fails, we'll make a roaring night. Here Shenandoah brawls along, there burly Blue Ridge echoes strong, to swell the Brigade's rousing song, of “Stonewall Jackson’s Way.”

Derived terms

amma canteen
canteen cowboy
canteen culture
canteen cup

Translations

small cafeteria or snack bar

Albanian: mensë (sq) f
Arabic: مَقْصَف‎ (ar) m (maqṣaf), كَافِتِيرِيَا‎ f (kāfetēriyā)
Hijazi Arabic: مقصف‎ m (magṣaf)
Armenian: ճաշարան (hy) (čašaran)
Azerbaijani: yeməkxana (az), bufet (az), aşxana, kafeteriya
Bashkir: ашхана (aşxana)
Basque: kantina (eu), jantegi (eu)
Belarusian: стало́вая f (stalóvaja), яда́льня f (jadálʹnja), стало́ўка f (stalóŭka), стало́ўня f (stalóŭnja), стра́ўня f (stráŭnja), кафетэ́рый m (kafjetéryj), кафэтэ́рый m (kafetéryj)
Bulgarian: столо́ва (bg) f (stolóva), ла́вка f (lávka), трапеза́рия f (trapezárija)
Burmese: စစ်သုံးအိုးခွက် (cacsum:ui:hkwak)
Central Dusun: kantin
Chinese:
Cantonese: 餐廳, 餐厅 (caan¹ teng¹), 飯堂, 饭堂 (faan⁶ tong⁴)
Dungan: гуанзы (guanzɨ), цантин (cantin)
Mandarin: 食堂 (zh) (shítáng), 餐廳／餐厅 (zh) (cāntīng), 館子／馆子 (zh) (guǎnzi)
Czech: jídelna (cs) f, kantýna (cs) f
Danish: kantine c, cafeteria (da) n
Dutch: kantine (nl) c, cafetaria (nl) f
Estonian: söökla (et), kafeteeria
Faroese: kantina f, matstova f
Finnish: ruokala (fi), kanttiini (fi), henkilöstöruokala, kafeteria (fi)
French: cantine (fr) f, cafétéria (fr) f, cafèt’ (fr) f
Georgian: სასადილო (sasadilo)
German: Kantine (de) f, Mensa (de) f (for students), Cafeteria (de) f
Greek: καντίνα (el) f (kantína), τραπεζαρία (el) f (trapezaría), καφετέρια (el) f (kafetéria)
Hebrew: קַנטִינָה‎ (he) f (kantina), קָפִיטֶרְיָה‎‎ f (kafitéria)
Hindi: कैंटीन (hi) m (kaiṇṭīn), कैफ़ेटेरिया m (kaifeṭeriyā)
Hungarian: kantin (hu), menza (hu)
Icelandic: mötuneyti (is) n, matsalur (is) m
Indonesian: kantin (id)
Irish: ceaintín m, bialann f
Italian: mensa (it) f, caffetteria (it) f
Japanese: 食堂 (ja) (しょくどう, shokudō), カフェテリア (kafeteria), 学食 (ja) (がくしょく, gakushoku) (school cafeteria)
Kazakh: асхана (asxana), дәмхана (dämxana)
Khmer: អាហារដ្ឋាន (ʼaahaaratthaan)
Korean: 식당(食堂) (ko) (sikdang), 구내식당(構內食堂) (gunaesikdang), 카페테리아 (kapeteria)
Kyrgyz: ашкана (ky) (aşkana), столовая (ky) (stolovaya), кафетерий (ky) (kafeteriy)
Lao: ຮ້ານອາຫານ (lo) (hān ʼā hān)
Latin: (military) caupona castrensis f
Latvian: ēdnīca f, kafetērija f
Lithuanian: valgykla f
Macedonian: кантина f (kantina), менза f (menza), кафетерија f (kafeterija)
Malay: kantin, kafeteria
Maori: kāmuri, kāmuri
Mongolian:
Cyrillic: гуанз (mn) (guanz)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: kantine m or f, kafeteria (no) m
Occitan: cantina f
Ottoman Turkish: آشخانه‎ (aşhâne)
Pashto: کانتين‎ (ps) m (kāntín)
Persian: کافه‌تریا‎ (kâfe-teriyâ), آشخانه‎ (fa) (âšxâne) (dated)
Polish: stołówka (pl) f, kafeteria (pl) f
Portuguese: cantina (pt) f
Romanian: cantină (ro) f, cofetărie (ro) f
Russian: столо́вая (ru) f (stolóvaja), заку́сочная (ru) f (zakúsočnaja), буфе́т (ru) m (bufét), кафете́рий (ru) m (kafetɛ́rij), столо́вка (ru) f (stolóvka) (colloquial)
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: канти́на f, ме̏нза f, кафетѐрија f
Roman: kantína (sh) f, mȅnza (sh) f, kafetèrija (sh) f
Slovak: kantína f, jedáleň f
Slovene: menza (sl) f
Spanish: cantina (es) f
Swedish: matsal (sv) c, kantin (sv) c, cafeteria (sv) c
Tajik: ошхона (tg) (ošxona)
Tatar: ашханә (tt) (aşxanä)
Thai: โรงอาหาร (roong-aa-hǎan)
Turkish: kantin (tr), aşhane (tr), kafeterya (tr)
Turkmen: mytara, aşhana (tk)
Ukrainian: їда́льня (uk) f (jidálʹnja), кафете́рій m (kafetérij)
Uyghur: ئاشخانا‎ (ashxana)
Uzbek: oshxona (uz), ovqatxona (uz), yemakxona (uz), kafeteriy
Vietnamese: căng tin (vi), nhà ăn (vi)
Welsh: caban bwyd m

temporary or mobile cafe

Greek: καντίνα (el) f (kantína)
Swedish: kantin (sv) c, markententeri n

box with compartments

Finnish: ruokailuvälinelaatikko, aterinlaatikko
German: Besteckkasten m
Greek: κασετίνα (el) f (kasetína)
Icelandic: hnífaparakassi m
Portuguese: faqueiro m

military mess kit

Basque: mahai-tresnak
Finnish: ruokailuvälinesarja, pakki (fi)
Icelandic: mataráhöld hermanna n pl
Welsh: blwch (cy) m

water bottle

Arabic: زَمْزَمِيَّة‎ f (zamzamiyya)
Belarusian: пля́ха f (pljáxa), пля́шка f (pljáška), бідо́н m (bidón)
Bulgarian: мане́рка f (manérka)
Catalan: cantimplora (ca) f
Chinese:
Mandarin: 水壺／水壶 (zh) (shuǐhú)
Czech: polní láhev f (military)
Dutch: veldfles (nl)
Estonian: pläsku, lähker (historical)
Faroese: lummafløska f
Finnish: kenttäpullo (fi)
French: gourde (fr) f, bidon (fr) m
German: Feldflasche (de) f
Greek: παγούρι (el) n (pagoúri)
Hebrew: מֵימִיָּה / מימייה‎ f
Hungarian: kulacs (hu)
Icelandic: vatnsbrúsi m
Italian: borraccia (it) f
Japanese: 水筒 (ja) (すいとう, suitō)
Khmer: ប៊ីដុង (km) (biidong)
Korean: 수통(水桶) (ko) (sutong)
Lao: ກະຕິກ (lo) (ka tik)
Latin: laguncula f
Macedonian: чутура f (čutura)
Persian: قمقمه‎ (fa) (qomqome)
Polish: manierka (pl) f
Portuguese: cantil (pt) m
Russian: фля́га (ru) f (fljága), фля́жка (ru) f (fljážka), бидо́н (ru) m (bidón)
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: чу̀тура f
Roman: čùtura (sh) f
Spanish: cantimplora (es)
Swedish: fältflaska (sv) c
Thai: กระติก (th) (grà-dtìk)
Turkish: matara (tr)
Ukrainian: фля́га f (fljáha), фля́жка f (fljážka), пля́шка f (pljáška), бідо́н (uk) m (bidón)
Volapük: (soldier's) militaflad (vo)
Welsh: botel ddŵr f, fflasg ddŵr f

Spanish

Verb

canteen

inflection of cantear:
1. third-person plural present subjunctive
2. third-person plural imperative