cant

An argot, the jargon of a particular class or subgroup.countableusually

• He had the look of a prince, but the cant of a fishmonger.

A private or secret language used by a religious sect, gang, or other group.countableuncountableusually

A language spoken by some Irish Travellers; Shelta.uncountableusually

Empty, hypocritical talk.derogatoryuncountableusually

• He is too well grounded for all your philoſophical Cant to hurt.
• Of all the cants which are canted in this canting world,—though the cant of hypocrites may be the worſt,—the cant of criticiſm is the moſt tormenting!

Whining speech, such as that used by beggars.uncountableusually

A blazon of a coat of arms that makes a pun upon the name (or, less often, some attribute or function) of the bearer, canting arms.countableusually

A call for bidders at a public fair; an auction.obsoleteuncountableusually

• […]but numbers of these tenants or their descendants are now offering to sell their leases by cant,

To speak with the jargon of a class or subgroup.intransitive

• […]that uncouth affected garb of speech, or canting language rather, if I may so call it

To speak in set phrases.intransitive

To talk, beg, or preach in a singsong or whining fashion, especially in a false or empty manner.intransitive

• [I]f he proue not yet / The cunningſt, ranckeſt Rogue that euer Canted, / Ile neuer ſee man againe, […]
• [S]he was one of your ſoft ſpoken, canting, whining hypocrites, who with a truly jeſuitical art, could wreſt evil out of the moſt inoffenſive thought, word, look or action; […]

Of a blazon, to make a pun that references the bearer of a coat of arms.intransitive

To sell by auction, or bid at an auction.obsolete

• […]labouring with all their might for preventing the bishops from letting their revenues at a moderate half value[…] at the very instant, when they were every where canting their own land upon short leases, and sacrificing their oldest tena

Side, edge, corner, niche.obsolete

• under the cant of a hill

Slope, the angle at which something is set.

• Owing to the cant of the vessel, the masts hung far out over the water, and from my perch on the cross-trees I had nothing below me but the surface of the bay.

A corner (of a building).

An outer or external angle.

An inclination from a horizontal or vertical line; a slope or bevel; a tilt.

A movement or throw that overturns something.

• It is not only of great service in keeping the boat in her due position on the sea, but also in creating a tendency immediately to recover from any sudden cant, or lurch, from a heavy wave; and it is besides beneficial in diminishing the vi

A sudden thrust, push, kick, or other impulse, producing a bias or change of direction; also, the bias or turn so given.

• to give a ball a cant

A segment forming a side piece in the head of a cask.

A segment of the rim of a wooden cogwheel.

A piece of wood laid upon the deck of a vessel to support the bulkheads.

To set (something) at an angle; to tilt.transitive

• to cant a cask
• to cant a ship

To give a sudden turn or new direction to.transitive

• to cant round a stick of timber
• to cant a football

To bevel an edge or corner.transitive

To overturn so that the contents are emptied.transitive

To divide or parcel out.obsoletetransitive

A parcel, a division.dialectal

Lively, lusty.UKdialectalnot-comparable