Definitions for cannon
ˈkæn əncan·non

Princeton's WordNet(5.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. cannon(noun)

   a large artillery gun that is usually on wheels

2. cannon(noun)

   heavy gun fired from a tank

3. cannon(noun)

   (Middle Ages) a cylindrical piece of armor plate to protect the arm

4. cannon(noun)

   heavy automatic gun fired from an airplane

5. cannon, shank(noun)

   lower part of the leg extending from the hock to the fetlock in hoofed mammals

6. carom, cannon(verb)

   a shot in billiards in which the cue ball contacts one object ball and then the other

7. cannon(verb)

   make a cannon

8. cannon(verb)

   fire a cannon

Wiktionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. cannon(Noun)

   A complete assembly, consisting of an artillery tube and a breech mechanism, firing mechanism or base cap, which is a component of a gun, howitzer or mortar. It may include muzzle appendages.

   Etymology: Origin circa 1400 A.D. from canon, from cannone, from canna.

2. cannon(Noun)

   A large-bore machine gun.

   Etymology: Origin circa 1400 A.D. from canon, from cannone, from canna.

3. cannon(Noun)

   A bone of a horse's leg, between the fetlock joint and the knee or hock.

   Etymology: Origin circa 1400 A.D. from canon, from cannone, from canna.

4. cannon(Noun)

   A large muzzle-loading artillery piece.

   Etymology: Origin circa 1400 A.D. from canon, from cannone, from canna.

5. cannon(Noun)

   A carom.

   Etymology: Origin circa 1400 A.D. from canon, from cannone, from canna.

6. cannon(Noun)

   The arm of a player that can throw well.

   He's got a cannon out in right.

   Etymology: Origin circa 1400 A.D. from canon, from cannone, from canna.

7. cannon(Verb)

   To bombard with cannons

   Etymology: Origin circa 1400 A.D. from canon, from cannone, from canna.

8. cannon(Verb)

   To play the carom billiard shot. To strike two balls with the cue ball

   The white cannoned off the red onto the pink.

   Etymology: Origin circa 1400 A.D. from canon, from cannone, from canna.

9. cannon(Verb)

   To fire something, especially spherical, rapidly.

   Etymology: Origin circa 1400 A.D. from canon, from cannone, from canna.

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Cannon

   of Cannon

   Etymology: [F. cannon, fr. L. canna reed, pipe, tube. See Cane.]

2. Cannon(noun)

   a great gun; a piece of ordnance or artillery; a firearm for discharging heavy shot with great force

   Etymology: [F. cannon, fr. L. canna reed, pipe, tube. See Cane.]

3. Cannon(noun)

   a hollow cylindrical piece carried by a revolving shaft, on which it may, however, revolve independently

   Etymology: [F. cannon, fr. L. canna reed, pipe, tube. See Cane.]

4. Cannon(noun)

   a kind of type. See Canon

   Etymology: [F. cannon, fr. L. canna reed, pipe, tube. See Cane.]

5. Cannon

   see Carom

   Etymology: [F. cannon, fr. L. canna reed, pipe, tube. See Cane.]

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Cannon

   A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellants to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees, depending on their intended use on the battlefield. The word cannon is derived from several languages, in which the original definition can usually be translated as tube, cane, or reed. The plural of cannon is also cannon in British English, but in American English, cannons is generally preferred. In the modern era, the term cannon has fallen into decline, replaced by "guns" or "artillery" if not a more specific term such as "mortar" or "howitzer", except for in the field of aerial warfare, where it is usually shorthand for autocannon. First invented in China, cannon were among the earliest forms of gunpowder artillery, and over time replaced siege engines—among other forms of aging weaponry—on the battlefield. In the Middle East, the first use of the hand cannon is argued to be during the 1260 Battle of Ain Jalut between the Mamluks and Mongols. The first cannon in Europe were probably used in Iberia in the 11 and 12th centuries, and English cannon were first deployed in the Hundred Years' War, at the Battle of Crécy, in 1346. On the African continent, the cannon was first used by the Somali Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrihim al-Ghazi of the Adal Sultanate in his conquest of the steppes of Ugaden in 1529. It was during this period, the Middle Ages, that cannon became standardized, and more effective in both the anti-infantry and siege roles. After the Middle Ages most large cannon were abandoned in favor of greater numbers of lighter, more maneuverable pieces. In addition, new technologies and tactics were developed, making most defences obsolete; this led to the construction of star forts, specifically designed to withstand artillery bombardment though these too would find themselves rendered obsolete when explosive and armour piercing rounds made even these types of fortifications vulnerable.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Cannon

   kan′un, n. a great gun used in war: a stroke in billiards in which the player hits both the red and his opponent's ball.—v.i. to cannonade: to make a cannon at billiards: to collide.—n. Cannonade′, an attack with cannon.—v.t. to attack or batter with cannon.—ns. Cannonad′ing; Cann′on-ball, a ball usually made of cast-iron, to be shot from a cannon; Cann′on-bit, or Cann′on, a smooth round bit; Cann′on-bone, the long bone between the knee and the foot of a horse; Cannoneer′, Cannonier′, one who manages cannon; Cann′on-game, a form of billiards in which, the table having no pockets, the game consists in making a series of cannons; Cann′on-met′al, an alloy of about 90 parts of copper and 10 of tin, from which cannon are manufactured.—adj. Cann′on-proof, proof against cannon-shot.—ns. Cann′onry, cannonading: artillery; Cann′on-shot, a cannon-ball: the distance to which a cannon will throw a ball. [Fr. canon, from L. canna, a reed.]

Dictionary of Nautical Terms(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. cannon

   The well-known piece of artillery, mounted in battery on board or on shore, and made either of brass or iron. The principal parts are:--1st. The breech, together with the cascable and its button, called by seamen the pommelion. The breech is of solid metal, from the bottom of the concave cylinder or chamber to the cascable. 2d. The trunnions, which project on each side, and serve to support the cannon, hold it almost in equilibrio. 3d. The bore or caliber, is the interior of the cylinder, wherein the powder and shot are lodged when the cannon is loaded. The entrance of the bore is called the mouth or muzzle. It may be generally described as gradually tapering, with the various modifications of first and second reinforce and swell, to the muzzle or forward end. (See GUN.)

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. cannon

   A military engine of which the general form is that of a hollow cylinder closed at one end, and variously mounted, used for throwing balls and other instruments of death by force of gunpowder. Cannons are made of iron, brass, bronze, and sometimes of steel rods welded together, and are of different sizes. They are classified, from their nature, guns, howitzers, and mortars; also from their use, as field, mountain, prairie, sea-coast, and siege; also as rifled and smooth-bore. See Ordnance.

How to pronounce cannon?

1. 

   Alex

   US English

   

   Daniel

   British

   

   Karen

   Australian

   

   Veena

   Indian

How to say cannon in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of cannon in Chaldean Numerology is: 8

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of cannon in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

Examples of cannon in a Sentence

1. Chang Gwang-il:

   Timing wise, today's missile was a cannon salute on the Day of the Sun, leading up to the party congress, but now that it has failed, it is an embarrassment.

2. Evan Nappen:

   This is a Queen Anne flintlock, which is a very pretty gun, the barrel looks like a cannon and it has a single shot – you have to actually untwist the barrel to load it – it’s pretty involved to even attempt to load it. But the craftsmanship is from the 1760s, and it’s just magnificent to think that every piece of it was handmade.

3. Confucius:

   Do not use a cannon to kill a mosquito.

4. Dyan Cannon:

   Jennifer Grant is extraordinary in every way, not just spectacularly beautiful, but inwardly majestic, special and kind … I ’m always with Jennifer Grant and the kids … I ’m Actress Dyan Cannon. I ’m not a grandmother, I ’m a gogo because I ’m always on the go. We have an amazing relationship. We’re so honest and real with each other. Sometimes it’s difficult, but most of the time it’s wonderful.

5. Ted Galen Carpenter:

   China is dealing with what is a loose cannon now but might, by attempting to engage in tougher love toward Pyongyang, end up with a client state that is completely unrestrained, then Kim's regime truly is unconstrained and can engage in conduct that is beyond reckless.

Images & Illustrations of cannon

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