canister

noun

can·​is·​ter ˈka-nə-stər 

variants or less commonly cannister

1

: an often cylindrical container for holding a usually specified object or substance

a film canister

2

: encased shot for close-range artillery fire

3

: a perforated metal box for gas masks with material to adsorb, filter, or detoxify airborne poisons and irritants

Synonyms

• barrel
• can
• drum
• tin

Examples of canister in a Sentence

she put the store-bought cookies in a fancy canister to make them look homemade

Recent Examples on the Web

The British tabloid Metro reported the canister contained laughing gas. —Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 25 Feb. 2025

Once its internal canister is full up, the J20 dutifully heads back to base, where a mighty noise indicates the dust canister has been sucked clean. —New Atlas, 28 Jan. 2025

Rose watches the camera feed with Mosley to ID the men, alive or dead, and eventually, the bomb squad successfully disarms the canisters. —Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 27 Jan. 2025

Once Firefly's lander separated from the Falcon 9, the rocket jettisoned the canister, performed a brief engine firing to maneuver into a slightly different orbit, then released ispace's lander. —Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 16 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin canistrum basket, from Greek kanastron wicker basket, from kanna reed — more at cane

First Known Use

1692, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for canister

• banister

Kids Definition

canister

noun

can·​is·​ter

variants also cannister

ˈkan-ə-stər 

: a small box or can for holding a dry product (as coffee, flour, or sugar)