Can't or cant?
can't is a verb meaning “Cannot (negative modal auxiliary); be unable to; not have the ability to…”; cant is a noun meaning “An argot, the jargon of a particular class or subgroup”. Use can't as a verb and cant as a noun (cant is also a verb: “To speak with the jargon of a class or subgroup”). In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) can't is about 28 times as common as cant.
What is the difference between can't and cant?
| can't | cant | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | verb | noun, verb, adjective |
| Meaning | Cannot (negative modal auxiliary); be unable to; not have the ability to (whether due to lacking relevant strength or skill or knowledge or supplies, or due to… To be forbidden to; to be not permitted to | An argot, the jargon of a particular class or subgroup A private or secret language used by a religious sect, gang, or other group To speak with the jargon of a class or subgroup |
| Example | I can’t quite get it to work | He had the look of a prince, but the cant of a fishmonger |
| Forms | none | cants |
| Pronunciation | not recorded | /kænt/ |
| In writing | 631 times per million words | 22 times per million words |
Sources: can't and cant in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of can't and cant
can't
- 1
Cannot (negative modal auxiliary); be unable to; not have the ability to (whether due to lacking relevant strength or skill or knowledge or supplies, or due to logical impossibility, etc)
I can’t quite get it to work
- 2
To be forbidden to; to be not permitted to
You can’t enter the hall without a ticket
- 3
slangTo be unwilling to; to not have the desire of; to don’t want to
Will you come to dinner with us tonight? Can't; already have plans this evening
cant
- 1
An argot, the jargon of a particular class or subgroup
He had the look of a prince, but the cant of a fishmonger
- 2
To speak with the jargon of a class or subgroup
- 3
Slope, the angle at which something is set
- 4
To set (something) at an angle; to tilt
to cant a cask
- 5
A parcel, a division
- 6
UKLively, lusty
- 7
A private or secret language used by a religious sect, gang, or other group
- 8
To speak in set phrases
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, can't or cant?
can't appears 631 times per million words; cant 22 times per million words.
can't 631 times per million wordscant 22 times per million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).