1
as in doctrines
a statement or body of statements concerning faith or morals proclaimed by a church
members of the church must abide by its canons
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in lists
a record of a series of items (as names or titles) usually arranged according to some system
the canon of plays that are attributed to William Shakespeare
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in laws
a collection or system of rules of conduct
the ABA Model Code of Professional Responsibility is a lawyer's canon
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of canons
The Stockholm Series reminded me that one function of canons is to create solidarity.
—
Colton Valentine, New Yorker, 24 Jan. 2026
Both male and female idols (and the crowds) are drenched by water canons throughout the festival.
—Jae-Ha Kim, Rolling Stone, 8 Dec. 2025
It is eventually revealed that Kawaji was also the man who gave the order to fire canons at the Battle of Toba–Fushimi, killing samurai on both sides after the outcome had been decided.
—Kayti Burt, Time, 13 Nov. 2025
There are no canons of forgery in Quintilian’s Institutes or Cicero.
—JSTOR Daily, 16 Oct. 2025
Confetti canons shot out glittering rainbows, and Derevjanik began to dance around, shouting in glee.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 1 Oct. 2025
On Tuesday, the District Administration Office in Kathmandu said government forces used water canons, tear gas, and rubber bullets in an attempt to clamp down on protests.
—Juliana Kim, NPR, 10 Sep. 2025
Peppard believes that before organizations can deliver on the transformational potential of AI, or indeed any transformational technology, there are multiple canons defining the dominant orthodoxy that must be tackled head-on.
—Randy Bean, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Police used water canons and fired rounds of tear gas to push back the demonstrators, who hurled bottles, rocks and flares at them.
—CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2025
Colton Valentine, New Yorker, 24 Jan. 2026
Both male and female idols (and the crowds) are drenched by water canons throughout the festival.
—Jae-Ha Kim, Rolling Stone, 8 Dec. 2025
It is eventually revealed that Kawaji was also the man who gave the order to fire canons at the Battle of Toba–Fushimi, killing samurai on both sides after the outcome had been decided.
—Kayti Burt, Time, 13 Nov. 2025
There are no canons of forgery in Quintilian’s Institutes or Cicero.
—JSTOR Daily, 16 Oct. 2025
Confetti canons shot out glittering rainbows, and Derevjanik began to dance around, shouting in glee.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 1 Oct. 2025
On Tuesday, the District Administration Office in Kathmandu said government forces used water canons, tear gas, and rubber bullets in an attempt to clamp down on protests.
—Juliana Kim, NPR, 10 Sep. 2025
Peppard believes that before organizations can deliver on the transformational potential of AI, or indeed any transformational technology, there are multiple canons defining the dominant orthodoxy that must be tackled head-on.
—Randy Bean, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Police used water canons and fired rounds of tear gas to push back the demonstrators, who hurled bottles, rocks and flares at them.
—CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for canons
Noun
-
Two people in the same local assembly may share similar doctrines but be at odds over the efficacy of modern scientific medicine, especially vaccines.—
Cory Anderson,
STAT,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Prevailing economic doctrines proved flawed.—
Edward Lotterman,
Twin Cities,
1 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Add in Paul Mescal's solid turn as an absent Bard dad who deals with the loss in his own way, plus a cathartic final act, and director Chloé Zhao's gut-wrenching historical drama has a good chance of placing high on a lot of Oscar voters' lists.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
8 Mar. 2026
-
Pageants, deans' lists, graduations or military enlistments are not accepted.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
8 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Nessel's office alleges that Kalshi has circumvented Michigan's gambling laws by offering users to trade contracts based on whether specific events will happen, acting and operating like a gambling platform and should be subject to the same state laws that other online gaming apps are.—
Jalen Williams,
Freep.com,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Australia has strong laws around foreign interference and national security, and those protections should apply here.—
Christina Macfarlane,
CNN Money,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
All listings featured on Condé Nast Traveler are independently selected by our editors.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 Mar. 2026
-
While Hong Kong got off to a strong start this year for listings, war in the Middle East has cast doubts on the outlook for markets globally.—
Dave Sebastian,
Bloomberg,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Founding Father James Madison included this important bulwark against governmental overreaching in his introductory draft of the Bill of Rights, and it was then incorporated into the United States Constitution and many of the individual state constitutions.—
Barbara Jaffe,
New York Daily News,
4 Mar. 2026
-
According to our constitutions, our people have the right to protest and to go for gatherings and demonstrations.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
1 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Every work is available for acquisition via discreet QR codes placed beside the art.—
David Morris,
Travel + Leisure,
4 Mar. 2026
-
However, a new Idaho law aimed at helping state taxes reflect federal tax codes could delay refunds, the Idaho Statesman previously reported.—
Hali Smith
March 4,
Idaho Statesman,
4 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Canons.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/canons. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.
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