Revised as of
29 June 2023
While canvas is an alternative spelling for canvass, please try to contain it to Scrabble or Boggle! My first reaction to seeing canvas used to discuss a poll or getting people to vote is going to be wondering if the people are going to be wrapped up in a thick, heavy tarp and forced to vote. Whereas if someone uses canvass when the topic is sailing, well, I always thought there was only supposed to be one captain on a ship!
Canvas is a a heavy cloth usually used for sails and tents.
Canvass is about soliciting votes or going door to door asking questions.
Word Confusions . . .
. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.
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| Canvas | Canvass |
|---|---|
3-D Schildersdoek is Janvdee’s own work under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. — One blank canvas behind the other. |
David Miliband and Nick Palmer Canvass in Stapleford by Colonel Warden at en.wikipedia is under the CC BY-SA 3.0license, via Wikimedia Commons. |
| Part of Grammar: | |
| Adjective; Noun; Verb, transitive Plural for the noun: canvases Third person present verb: canvases Present participle: canvasing Alternative spelling for canvass |
Noun; Verb, intransitive & transitive Plural for the noun: canvasses Third person present verb: canvasses Alternative spelling for canvas |
| Adjective: To describe the material used in something Noun: Used to make sails and tents Surface for oil painting As a basis for creative work Floor of a boxing or wrestling ring A type of base material used for embroidery or tapestry Tapering ends of a racing boat that were originally covered by canvas [Computer graphics] Region on which graphics can be rendered Verb, transitive: |
Noun: Act or process of attempting to secure votes or ascertain opinions Verb, intransitive: Verb, transitive:
Discuss thoroughly |
| Examples: | |
| Adjective: I like using canvas bags for my groceries. “Pretty good refs then – and all yours by wearing a canvas shoe” (Cochrane). “We crossed the river in canvas boats” (Sunday). Noun: I’ll need to stretch that canvas before I can paint. The author takes rural midwestern life as a canvas for a series of tightly woven character studies (Wiktionary). HTML5 and CSS 3 combine to allow both the programmer and the end-user to draw on a canvas. Verb, transitive: He canvased the work for travel. |
Noun: We will need to do a house-to-house canvass. Did the officers complete the canvass? The canvass is still underway. Verb, intransitive: I’m canvassing for the Labour Party. “The only objection which remains to be canvassed, is that which would substitute the proportion of two thirds of all the members composing the senatorial body, to that of two thirds of the members present” (Hamilton, 503-9). Verb, transitive: They promised to canvass all member clubs for their views. They’re canvassing support among shareholders. The issues that were canvassed are still unresolved. They’re canvassing the ward this week. |
| Derivatives: | |
| Adjective: canvaslike | Adjective: uncanvassed, well-canvassed Noun: canvasser, precanvass Verb: precanvass (used with object), undercanvass |
| History of the Word: | |
| The first known use was in the 13th century.
Late Middle English from the Old Northern French canevas, based on the Latin cannabis meaning hemp, from the Greek kannabis. |
Its first known use was in 1508, in the sense of toss in a canvas sheet, as a sport or punishment.
Mid-16th century saw this sense extended to include criticize, discuss, and propose for discussion, which led to seek support for. |
C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!
Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.
Resources for Canvas versus Canvass
Apple Dictionary.com
Cochrane, Lauren. “The Converse All Star Has Been Rebooted – Not That You’d Know It.” The Guardian. 24 July 2015. Web. 2 Nov 2022. <https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2015/jul/24/the-converse-all-star-rebooted-chuck-taylor-all-star-ii>.
Collins Dictionary: canvas
Hamilton, Alexander, James Madison, and John Jay. art. 2. sec. 2. cls. 2 and 3. no. 75. The Federalist. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press, 1961. Originally published 1788. <https://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/a2_2_2-3s9.html>.
Sunday Times. 2014.
Wiktionary: canvas
Pinterest Photo Credits
AFL CIO Door knocking, 2008, by Molly Theobald for the AFL-CIO is under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. Blank Canvas, Easel, and Two Paintbrushes is in the public domain, via PickPik.
