2 VERB If one of a company's products cannibalizes the company's sales, people buy it instead of any of the company's other products. [BUSINESS ] □ [V n] A website need not cannibalise existing sales.
can|non /kæ nən/ (cannons )
1 N‑COUNT A cannon is a large gun, usually on wheels, which used to be used in battles.
2 N‑COUNT A cannon is a heavy automatic gun, especially one that is fired from an aircraft.
3 PHRASE If someone is a loose cannon , they do whatever they want and nobody can predict what they are going to do. □ Max is a loose cannon politically.
4 → see also water cannon
can|non|ade /kæ nəne I d/ (cannonades ) N‑COUNT A cannonade is an intense continuous attack of gunfire. □ …the distant thunder of a cannonade.
cannon|ball /kæ nənbɔːl/ (cannonballs ) also cannon ball N‑COUNT A cannonball is a heavy metal ball that is fired from a cannon.
ca n|non fod|der also cannon-fodder N‑UNCOUNT If someone in authority regards people they are in charge of as cannon fodder , they do not care if these people are harmed or lost in the course of their work. □ The conscripts were treated as cannon fodder.
can|not ◆◇◇ /kæ nɒt, kənɒ t/ Cannot is the negative form of can .
can|ny /kæ ni/ (cannier , canniest ) ADJ [usu ADJ n] A canny person is clever and able to think quickly. You can also describe a person's behaviour as canny . □ He was far too canny to risk giving himself away.
ca|noe /kənuː / (canoes ) N‑COUNT A canoe is a small, narrow boat that you move through the water using a stick with a wide end called a paddle.
ca|noe|ing /kənuː I ŋ/ N‑UNCOUNT Canoeing is the sport of using and racing a canoe. □ They went canoeing in the wilds of Canada.
ca|noe|ist /kənuː I st/ (canoeists ) N‑COUNT A canoeist is someone who is skilled at racing and performing tests of skill in a canoe.
can|on /kæ nən/ (canons )
1 N‑COUNT A canon is a member of the clergy who is on the staff of a cathedral.
2 N‑COUNT A canon of texts is a list of them that is accepted as genuine or important. [FORMAL ] □ [+ of ] He had to read a canon of accepted literary texts. □ …the Irish literary canon.
ca|noni|cal /kənɒ n I k ə l/ ADJ [ADJ n] If something has canonical status, it is accepted as having all the qualities that a thing of its kind should have. □ …Ballard's status as a canonical writer.
can|on|ize /kæ nəna I z/ (canonizes , canonizing , canonized ) in BRIT, also use canonise VERB [usu passive] If a dead person is canonized , it is officially announced by the Catholic Church that he or she is a saint. □ [be V -ed] Joan of Arc was finally canonized by Pope Benedict XV in 1920.
ca n|on la w N‑UNCOUNT Canon law is the law of the Christian Church. It has authority only for that church and its members. □ The Church's canon law forbids remarriage of divorced persons.
ca|noo|dle /kənuː d ə l/ (canoodles , canoodling , canoodled ) VERB If two people are canoodling , they are kissing and holding each other a lot. [mainly OLD-FASHIONED ] □ [V + with ] He was seen canoodling with his new girlfriend. [Also V ]
ca n open|er (can openers ) N‑COUNT A can opener is the same as a tin opener .
cano|pied /kæ nəpid/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] A canopied building or piece of furniture is covered with a roof or a piece of material supported by poles. □ …a canopied Elizabethan bed.
cano|py /kæ nəpi/ (canopies )
1 N‑COUNT A canopy is a decorated cover, often made of cloth, which is placed above something such as a bed or a seat.
2 N‑COUNT [usu sing] A canopy is a layer of something that spreads out and covers an area, for example the branches and leaves that spread out at the top of trees in a forest. □ The trees formed such a dense canopy that all beneath was a deep carpet of pine-needles.
cant /kæ nt/ N‑UNCOUNT If you refer to moral or religious statements as cant , you are criticizing them because you think the person making them does not really believe what they are saying. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ …politicians holding forth with their usual hypocritical cant.
can't /kɑː nt, [AM ] kæ nt/ Can't is the usual spoken form of 'cannot'.
can|ta|loupe /kæ ntəluːp, [AM ] -loʊp/ (cantaloupes ) also cantaloup N‑COUNT A cantaloupe is a type of melon .
can|tan|ker|ous /kæntæ ŋkərəs/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] Someone who is cantankerous is always finding things to argue or complain about. [WRITTEN ] □ …a cantankerous old man.
can|ta|ta /kæntɑː tə/ (cantatas ) N‑COUNT A cantata is a fairly short musical work for singers and instruments.
can|teen /kæntiː n/ (canteens )
1 N‑COUNT A canteen is a place in a factory, shop, or college where meals are served to the people who work or study there. □ …a school canteen. □ …canteen food.
2 N‑COUNT A canteen is a small plastic bottle for carrying water and other drinks. Canteens are used by soldiers. □ [+ of ] …a full canteen of water.
3 N‑COUNT A canteen of cutlery is a set of knives, forks, and spoons in a specially designed box.
can|ter /kæ ntə r / (canters , cantering , cantered ) VERB When a horse canters , it moves at a speed that is slower than a gallop but faster than a trot. □ [V + into , V prep/adv] The competitors cantered into the arena to conclude the closing ceremony. [Also V ] ● N‑COUNT [usu sing] Canter is also a noun. □ Carnac set off at a canter.