canvas

[ kan-vuhs ]

noun

1. a closely woven, heavy cloth of cotton, hemp, or linen, used for tents, sails, etc.
2. a piece of this or similar material on which a painting is made.
3. a painting on canvas.
4. a tent, or tents collectively.
5. sailcloth.
6. sails collectively.
7. any fabric of linen, cotton, or hemp of a coarse loose weave used as a foundation for embroidery stitches, interlining, etc.
8. the floor of a boxing ring traditionally consisting of a canvas covering stretched over a mat.

Trademark, Digital Technology.

1. Canvas, the brand name for an open-source learning management system, launched in 2011.

canvas

/ ˈkænvəs /

noun

1. 1. a heavy durable cloth made of cotton, hemp, or jute, used for sails, tents, etc
   2. ( as modifier )

      a canvas bag

2. 1. a piece of canvas or a similar material on which a painting is done, usually in oils
   2. a painting on this material, esp in oils
3. a tent or tents collectively
4. nautical any cloth of which sails are made
5. nautical the sails of a vessel collectively
6. any coarse loosely woven cloth on which embroidery, tapestry, etc, is done
7. the canvas
   the floor of a boxing or wrestling ring
8. rowing the tapering covered part at either end of a racing boat, sometimes referred to as a unit of length

   to win by a canvas

9. under canvas
   1. in tents
   2. nautical with sails unfurled

Other Words From

• canvas·like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of canvas¹

First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English canevas, from Anglo-French, Old North French, from unattested Vulgar Latin cannabāceus (noun use of adjective), equivalent to Latin cannab(is) + -āceus; hemp, -aceous

Word History and Origins

Origin of canvas¹

C14: from Norman French canevas, ultimately from Latin cannabis hemp

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. under canvas,
   1. Nautical. with set sails.
   2. in tents; in the field:

      the troops under canvas.

Example Sentences

A Southern California couple who lost their French bulldog have gone to great lengths over the last two months to find the pooch, resorting to bloodhounds, animal psychics, cash rewards and door-to-door canvasing.

From Los Angeles Times

It is not a blank canvas for outsiders to fill with ecology in their own image.

From Salon

WBO champion Billam-Smith was the first to make his way to the ring at the Venue arena, a stern look on his face as he completed a lap of the canvas with his arm raised.

From BBC

“I can remember someone standing in a room and canvas bags pilling up, which must have been his equipment to go to Korea, but I can’t see his face,” she says.

From BBC

The Night Watch has been attacked with a knife - in 1911 and again in 1975, when the attacker slashed 12 cuts into the canvas.

From BBC

Related Words

• art
• artwork
• picture
• piece
• portrait
• watercolor