càn
adjectiveverbnoun Sino-Vietnamese
Hanoi [kaːn˨˩]Huế [kaːŋ˦˩]Saigon [kaːŋ˨˩] browser voice
Each syllable carries one of six tones; the mark on the vowel tells you which. How the six tones sound →
càn means wanton; indiscriminate; at random.
Chinese characters: 乾
Meanings of càn in English
Adjective
- of behaviour wanton; indiscriminate; at random
Verb
- to raid; to mop up; to attack
- rare to rush headlong through
Noun
- the first trigram of the eight trigrams in Taoist cosmology
Words with càn
Historical script (chữ Nôm / Hán)
Before the Latin alphabet (chữ Quốc ngữ) became standard, càn could be written as 乾, 𠼳, 㨴, 干. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.
Etymology
Sino-Vietnamese word from 乾.
Frequently asked questions
What does càn mean in English?
càn (adjective) means "wanton; indiscriminate; at random".
How do you pronounce càn?
IPA: Hanoi [kaːn˨˩]; Saigon [kaːŋ˨˩]. Tones: càn — falling tone (huyền).
Is càn a Sino-Vietnamese word?
Yes. càn is a Sino-Vietnamese word from the Chinese characters 乾.