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cannot

[ kan-ot, ka-not, kuh- ]

verb

  1. a form of can not.


cannot

/ kæˈnɒt; ˈkænɒt /

verb

  1. an auxiliary verb expressing incapacity, inability, withholding permission, etc; can not
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Spelling Note

Cannot is sometimes also spelled can not. The one-word spelling is by far the more common: Interest rates simply cannot continue at their present level. The contraction can't is most common in speech and informal writing.
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yvlog History and Origins

Origin of cannot1

A Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400
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Idioms and Phrases

  1. cannot but, have no alternative but to:

    We cannot but choose otherwise.

More idioms and phrases containing cannot

see under can't .
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Compare Meanings

How does cannot compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Both options are possible, while it cannot entirely be discounted he may move to another, less taxing, European league.

From

P now suffers from severe dystonic cerebral palsy, is effectively blind, has an intellectual disability, has epilepsy, can only communicate by crying and cannot be comforted when crying.

From

And you're right: History does not repeat, but we cannot escape its legacies.

From

This will be just as close, and I cannot really call a winner.

From

He cannot appeal, as the decision was made by South Korea's top court.

From

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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