Etymograph

English

cannot

Cannot comes from Middle English can not.

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500can not1
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1668cannot1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English cannot
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1668, James Dalrymple, Mr. Alexander Seaton contra Menzies: “The Pupil after his Pupillarity, had granted a Diſcharge…”.

Lineage

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500can notWiktionary, English cannot
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1668cannotWiktionary, English cannot. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1668, James Dalrymple, Mr. Alexander Seaton contra Menzies: “The Pupil after his Pupillarity, had granted a Diſcharge…”

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Today it means

verb Can not; be unable to (whether due to physical inability, logical impossibility, etc.).

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “cannot”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Middle English can not / cannot