Word.ws English Dictionary

ca'n't

ca'n't is the obsolete spelling of can't.

Meaning of can't

Verb

can't

  1. Cannot (negative modal auxiliary); be unable to; not have the ability to (whether due to lacking relevant strength or skill or knowledge or supplies, or due to logical impossibility, etc).
    • I can’t quite get it to work.
    Antonyms:
    be able to, can
  2. To be forbidden to; to be not permitted to.
    • You can’t enter the hall without a ticket.
    Antonyms:
    be able to, can, have to, must
  3. (euphemistic, slang) To be unwilling to; to not have the desire of; to don’t want to.
    • Will you come to dinner with us tonight? Can't; already have plans this evening.

Questions about ca'n't

What is ca'n't the obsolete spelling of?
Ca'n't is the obsolete spelling of can't.

Words near ca'n't in the dictionary

  1. ca' canny
  2. ca' cannyism
  3. ca'canny
  4. ca'ing whale
  5. ca'ing whales
  6. ca'n't
  7. ca'tridge
  8. ca'tridges
  9. ca-ching
  10. Ca-montmorillonite
  11. CA-MRSA

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: ca'n't (page history and authors); can't (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “ca'n't.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/ca%27n%27t. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.