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PlainSpell

cane

/keɪn/noun, verb

cane is spelled C-A-N-E: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 5.8 times per million words in written English, the 10,196th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, cane means “The slender, flexible main stem of a plant such as bamboo, including many species in the grass family Gramineae” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of cane is canes.

How many letters and syllables are in cane?

Letters4: C-A-N-E
Syllables1 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing5.8 times per million words; the 10,196th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search
Same letters

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.

How common is cane?

Cane appears 5.8 times per million words in written English, the 10,196th most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce cane?

  • /keɪn/

Cane has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-cane.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with cane?

No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as cane.

Spelled with the same letters in another order: acne.

Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).

Forms of cane

  • canes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
  • caning participle, present
  • caned participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does cane mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

  1. 1

    The slender, flexible main stem of a plant such as bamboo, including many species in the grass family Gramineae.

  2. 2

    The plant itself, including many species in the grass family Gramineae; a reed.

  3. 3

    Sugar cane.

  4. 4

    USMaize or, rarely, sorghum, when such plants are processed to make molasses (treacle) or sugar.

  5. 5

    A short rod or stick, traditionally of wood or bamboo, used for corporal punishment.

  6. 6

    Corporal punishment by beating with a cane.

    The teacher gave his student the cane for throwing paper.

  7. 7

    A lance or dart made of cane.

  8. 8

    A strong short staff used for support or decoration during walking; a walking stick.

    After breaking his leg, he needed a cane to walk.

verb

  1. 1

    To strike or beat with a cane or similar implement.

  2. 2

    To make or furnish with cane or rattan.

    to cane chairs

  3. 3

    UKslangTo destroy; to comprehensively defeat.

    Mudchester Rovers were caned 10-0.

  4. 4

    UKslangTo do something well, in a competent fashion.

  5. 5

    UKslangTo go very fast.

  6. 6

    AustraliaUKslangTo produce extreme pain.

    Don’t hit me with that. It really canes!

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Cane in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchcanne, tige (slender flexible stem of plants such as bamboo), bastonnade (the cane: corporal punishment consisting of a…), canne blanche (long collapsible rod used by vision impaired…), bâtonner (to beat with a cane)
GermanRohr (slender flexible stem of plants such as bamboo), Blindenstock, weisser Langstock (long collapsible rod used by vision impaired…), Rohrstock (a short wooden or bamboo rod or stick used for…)
Portuguesecolmo (slender flexible stem of plants such as bamboo), chibateamento (the cane: corporal punishment consisting of a…), bengala (long collapsible rod used by vision impaired…), chibata, vergasta (a short wooden or bamboo rod or stick used for…), cana (plant itself)
Spanishcaña (slender flexible stem of plants such as bamboo), bastón, bastón blanco (long collapsible rod used by vision impaired…)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does cane come from?

From Middle English cane, canne, from Old French cane (“sugar cane”), from Latin canna (“reed”), from Ancient Greek κάννα (kánna), from Akkadian 𒄀 (qanû, “reed”). Doublet of canna and kaneh. Related to channel and canal.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after cane