cant

C2+ Topic:General Vocabulary

US /kænt/ UK /kænt/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
hypocritical or insincere talk; the jargon of a particular group

He saw through the politician's pious cant.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · hypocritical or insincere... jargon slang argot hypocrisy sanctimony lingo

Opposites

sincerity

Word family

Forms acant

Etymology

Probably from Latin cantāre ('to sing'), via the notion of the singsong whine of beggars, hence the jargon of beggars and thieves and, by extension, insincere pious talk.

cantāre Latin canere Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# cant

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /kænt/
**IPA (UK):** /kænt/

## Meanings
1. hypocritical or insincere talk; the jargon of a particular group

## Examples
- He saw through the politician's pious cant.

## Synonyms
- jargon
- slang
- argot
- hypocrisy
- sanctimony
- lingo

## Antonyms
- sincerity

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: cantāre
- Root: canere

## Etymology
Probably from Latin cantāre ('to sing'), via the notion of the singsong whine of beggars, hence the jargon of beggars and thieves and, by extension, insincere pious talk.

## AI Etymology
Cant is a noun and verb meaning "hypocritical or insincere talk; the jargon of a particular group". Historically, it is probably from Latin cantāre ('to sing'), via the notion of the singsong whine of beggars, hence the jargon of beggars and thieves and, by extension, insincere pious talk. The older history should therefore be treated cautiously rather than as settled. The semantic history matters here: the earlier use is the starting point, and the modern sense, "hypocritical or insincere talk; the jargon of a particular group", is the later or specialized English value. The historical chain links Latin cantāre with Latin canere.

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

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