canister

noun

can·​is·​ter ˈka-nə-stər 

variants or less commonly cannister

1

: an often cylindrical container for holding a usually specified object or substance

a film canister

2

: encased shot for close-range artillery fire

3

: a perforated metal box for gas masks with material to adsorb, filter, or detoxify airborne poisons and irritants

Synonyms

• barrel
• can
• drum
• tin

Examples of canister in a Sentence

she put the store-bought cookies in a fancy canister to make them look homemade

Recent Examples on the Web

Email address: Like other Thai parents, they’d been bombarded by formula advertising on television, online and in grocery stores, where a rainbow of boxes and canisters of powdered toddler milk featured teddy bears in graduation caps and giveaways like toys or diapers. —Heather Vogell, ProPublica, 21 Mar. 2024

Existing state laws already ban the sale of nitrous oxide canisters for recreational purposes and for any purpose to people under 18. —Arpan Lobo, Detroit Free Press, 13 Mar. 2024

The docking station turns one of the grossest tasks—removing all the debris from the canister—into a nonissue. —Ella Field, Better Homes & Gardens, 13 Mar. 2024

According to Clinton Township’s website, the canisters contain butane, nitrous oxide and lighter fluid, measuring up to 18 inches in size and weighing up to 15 pounds each. —Leo Sands, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024

The fire that ignited Monday night at the warehouse, which housed a vape wholesale business and a vape and nitrous oxide brand, resulted in the death of a 19-year-old man who was at a nearby car wash and was hit in the head with a canister. —Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 6 Mar. 2024

Jean Marc Jean, 37, a freelance journalist, was covering antigovernment protests last month when a police tear-gas canister hit his left eye. —Frances Robles, New York Times, 17 Mar. 2024

The canisters, sometimes called whippets or whip-its, have everyday uses, like in cooking. —Arpan Lobo, Detroit Free Press, 13 Mar. 2024

Inside the facility were 100,000 vape pens, each with a lithium battery, plus a currently unknown number of canisters filled with nitrous oxide and butane, officials said. —Mitchell Willetts, Kansas City Star, 5 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin canistrum basket, from Greek kanastron wicker basket, from kanna reed — more at cane

First Known Use

1692, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

canister

noun

can·​is·​ter

variants also cannister

ˈkan-ə-stər 

: a small box or can for holding a dry product (as coffee, flour, or sugar)