as in inclination
the degree to which something rises up from a position level with the horizon
a steep cant of the riverbank at that turn in the river
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in deception
the pretending of having virtues, principles, or beliefs that one in fact does not have
many accused the evangelist of cant, since his lavish lifestyle seemed to bear little resemblance to what he was preaching
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in terminology
the special terms or expressions of a particular group or field
the colorful cant used by movie producers and publicity agents in Hollywood
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in leaning
running in a slanting direction
the cant buttresses on the interior walls are made of solid oak
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of cant
Joel Feder,
The Drive,
21 May 2026
The fairway cants to the right.
—
ABC News,
5 Apr. 2026
In the past, most serious coppice-workers divided the underwood into sections (known variously as panels, cants, fells, coupes, sales, burrows, and haggs), each containing a range of species on different cycles, so guaranteeing a crop every year.
—
Literary Hub,
29 Oct. 2025
If thieves’ cant—a language known only to criminals—was the Devil’s cabinet, bourgeois society couldn’t help but peep inside.
—
JSTOR Daily,
27 June 2024
Robert Ross,
Robb Report,
16 Feb. 2026
The center screen is handsomely integrated well below your road-facing sightline, and slightly canted toward the driver for exceptional readability.
—
Andrew P. Collins,
The Drive,
21 Jan. 2026
Alex stood across the living room, his head canted down and his eyes fixated on a carousel of TikTok videos emanating from his mother’s cellphone.
—
Max Klaver,
Miami Herald,
30 Oct. 2025
Verdier’s most notable innovation is the use of a canting keel as the support for one of the foils, with the other two contact points being a foil on the rudder and, alternately, the two lateral foils.
—
Bill Springer,
Forbes.com,
7 July 2025
Sharply angled surfaces, called chines, run from the nose to the air intakes on either side of the lower fuselage; chines then run further back from those intakes to the wings and to twin tail fins, which are slightly canted from the vertical.
—
IEEE Spectrum,
2 Jan. 2020
Noun
The front end has a shark nose design and the top edge of the hood cants foward.
—
Joel Feder,
The Drive,
21 May 2026
The fairway cants to the right.
—
ABC News,
5 Apr. 2026
In the past, most serious coppice-workers divided the underwood into sections (known variously as panels, cants, fells, coupes, sales, burrows, and haggs), each containing a range of species on different cycles, so guaranteeing a crop every year.
—
Literary Hub,
29 Oct. 2025
If thieves’ cant—a language known only to criminals—was the Devil’s cabinet, bourgeois society couldn’t help but peep inside.
—
JSTOR Daily,
27 June 2024
Verb
The cabin of a Lusso is a special place, notable for its dash, which prominently positions the huge speedometer and tach centrally and canted toward the driver.
—
Robert Ross,
Robb Report,
16 Feb. 2026
The center screen is handsomely integrated well below your road-facing sightline, and slightly canted toward the driver for exceptional readability.
—
Andrew P. Collins,
The Drive,
21 Jan. 2026
Alex stood across the living room, his head canted down and his eyes fixated on a carousel of TikTok videos emanating from his mother’s cellphone.
—
Max Klaver,
Miami Herald,
30 Oct. 2025
Verdier’s most notable innovation is the use of a canting keel as the support for one of the foils, with the other two contact points being a foil on the rudder and, alternately, the two lateral foils.
—
Bill Springer,
Forbes.com,
7 July 2025
Sharply angled surfaces, called chines, run from the nose to the air intakes on either side of the lower fuselage; chines then run further back from those intakes to the wings and to twin tail fins, which are slightly canted from the vertical.
—
IEEE Spectrum,
2 Jan. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cant
Noun
-
Burdette, leveraging his brother’s connections with college athletes, and his natural inclination to bring the party, had recruited agents who were younger and more fun than Pughsley’s original crowd.
-
Choosing a college major has always felt like a big life decision, influenced by not only personal inclinations and talents, but also by starting salaries—new engineering and computer science grads earn more than those with English degrees.
Noun
-
So, that's a kind of deception.
-
The county argues the grand jury fundamentally misunderstood what happened before the explosion, saying its investigation relied on speculation instead of evidence and wrongly blamed county officials for a criminal enterprise prosecutors say was built on years of deception.
Noun
-
Learning about their industry and its terminology would be a huge task for me.
-
Every major technology shift creates terminology confusion.
Adjective
-
Mayfield, who turned 31 in April, appeared on the Bucs’ injury report 10 out of 18 weeks with issues that spanned his foot, toe, knee, right biceps, oblique and right shoulder.
-
Altuve did not go on a minor-league rehab assignment before returning from his oblique injury.
Verb
-
Your 11th House of Friends tilts against routines as the instinctive Moon forms a quincunx to passionate Mars in your 6th House of Work.
-
The current balance appears tilted towards the holders.
Noun
-
His last act was a 35-foot birdie putt down the slope on the 18th green that dropped for a 1-under 69.
-
Once a blemish on the course due to its sharp slope, the area was completely overhauled.
Noun
-
The original trial was found to be invalid due to fraud and deceit.
-
And with that comes deceit and manipulation.
Noun
-
There is no real vocabulary and no grammar.
-
Is retirement in your vocabulary at all?
Cite this Entry
“Cant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cant. Accessed 28 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
