cancel: Meaning and Definition of

can•cel

Pronunciation: (kan'sul), [key]
— v., n. -celed, -cel•ing -celled, -cel•ling,
—v.t.
  1. to make void; revoke; annul: to cancel a reservation.
  2. to decide or announce that a planned event will not take place; call off: to cancel a meeting.
  3. to mark or perforate (a postage stamp, admission ticket, etc.) so as to render invalid for reuse.
  4. to neutralize; counterbalance; compensate for: His sincere apology canceled his sarcastic remark.
  5. He plans to cancel his account at the department store.
    1. to close (an account) by crediting or paying all outstanding charges:He plans to cancel his account at the department store.
    2. to eliminate or offset (a debit, credit, etc.) with an entry for an equal amount on the opposite side of a ledger, as when a payment is received on a debt.
  6. to eliminate by striking out a factor common to both the denominator and numerator of a fraction, equivalent terms on opposite sides of an equation, etc.
  7. to cross out (words, letters, etc.) by drawing a line over the item.
  8. to omit.
—v.i.
  1. to counterbalance or compensate for one another; become neutralized (often fol. by out): The pros and cons cancel out.
  2. (of factors common to both the denominator and numerator of a fraction, certain terms on opposite sides of an equation, etc.) to be equivalent; to allow cancellation.
—n.
  1. an act of canceling.
    1. omission.
    2. a replacement for an omitted part.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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