canteen

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English

Drinking from a canteen or water flask of late 20th century or early 21st century design. Note the attached stopper.

Etymology

Borrowed from French cantine, itself borrowed from Italian cantina. Doublet of cantina.

Pronunciation

Noun

canteen (plural canteens)

  1. A small cafeteria or snack bar, especially one in a military establishment, school, or place of work.
    1. (Hong Kong) A cafeteria in a school or place of work.
  2. A temporary or mobile café used in an emergency or on a film location etc.
  3. A box with compartments for storing eating utensils, silverware etc.
  4. A military mess kit.
  5. A water bottle, flask, or other vessel, typically used by a soldier or camper as a bottle for carrying water or liquor for drink
    • 1862, John Williamson Palmer, Stonewall Jackson's Way :
      Come, stack arms, Men! Pile on the rails; stir up the campfire bright; no matter if the canteen fails, we'll make a roaring night. Here Shenandoah brawls along, there burly Blue Ridge echoes strong, to swell the Brigade's rousing song, of “Stonewall Jackson’s Way.”

Derived terms

Descendants

  • Cantonese: can (ken6, ken6-2, canteen; cafeteria; restaurant)

Translations

Further reading

Spanish

Verb

canteen

  1. inflection of cantear:
    1. third-person plural present subjunctive
    2. third-person plural imperative