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View synonyms for canon

noun

  1. an ecclesiastical rule or law enacted by a council or other competent authority and, in the Roman Catholic Church, approved by the pope.

  2. the body of ecclesiastical law.

  3. the body of rules, principles, or standards accepted as axiomatic and universally binding in a field of study or art:

    the neoclassical canon.

  4. a fundamental principle or general rule:

    the canons of good behavior.

  5. the canons of taste.

  6. the books of the Bible recognized by any Christian church as genuine and inspired.

  7. any officially recognized set of sacred books.

  8. any comprehensive list of books within a field.

  9. There are 37 plays in the Shakespeare canon.

  10. established or agreed-upon constraints governing the background narrative, setting, storyline, characters, etc., in a particular fictional world:

    It’s accepted as canon that vampires are harmed by sunlight.

  11. a catalog or list, as of the saints acknowledged by the Church.

  12. Liturgy. the part of the Mass between the Sanctus and the Communion.

  13. Eastern Church. a liturgical sequence sung at matins, usually consisting of nine odes arranged in a fixed pattern.

  14. Music. consistent, note-for-note imitation of one melodic line by another, in which the second line starts after the first.

  15. Printing. a 48-point type.

noun

  1. one of a body of dignitaries or prebendaries attached to a cathedral or a collegiate church; a member of the chapter of a cathedral or a collegiate church.

  2. Roman Catholic Church. one of the members

    canons regular

    of certain religious orders.

/ ˈkænən /

noun

  1. Christianity

    a Church decree enacted to regulate morals or religious practices

  2. often plural a general rule or standard, as of judgment, morals, etc

  3. often plural a principle or accepted criterion applied in a branch of learning or art

  4. RC Church

    the complete list of the canonized saints

  5. RC Church

    the prayer in the Mass in which the Host is consecrated

  6. a list of writings, esp sacred writings, officially recognized as genuine

  7. a piece of music in which an extended melody in one part is imitated successively in one or more other parts

    See also round catch

  8. a list of the works of an author that are accepted as authentic

  9. (formerly) a size of printer's type equal to 48 point

/ ˈkænən /

noun

  1. one of several priests on the permanent staff of a cathedral, who are responsible for organizing services, maintaining the fabric, etc

  2. Also calledcanon regular

    RC Church

    a member of either of two religious orders, the Augustinian or Premonstratensian Canons, living communally as monks but performing clerical duties

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Other Words From

  • canon·like adjective

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Word History and Origins

Origin of canon1

First recorded

before 900; Middle English, Old English, from Latin, from Greek kanṓn “measuring rod, rule,” akin to kánna “cane”; cane

Origin of canon2

First recorded in

1200–50; Middle English canoun, chano(u)n, chanoine, from Anglo-French canun, Old French chanoine, from Late Latin canōnicus “(one) under the rule” (i.e., a priest as opposed to a lay person), from Latin “according to or under the rule,” from Greek kanōnikós; canon 1,

-ic

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Word History and Origins

Origin of canon1

Old English, from Latin, from Greek kanōn rule, rod for measuring, standard; related to kanna reed,

cane 1

Origin of canon2

C13: from Anglo-French canunie, from Late Latin canonicus one living under a rule, from

canon 1

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