Cannae

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. A Scots contraction meaning cannot, used to express that someone is unable to do something or that something is not possible
2. The Scottish form of the negative of can, indicating a lack of ability or permission in everyday speech
3. A dialect contraction of can not, found in Scots and some Scottish English to show inability or impossibility

Etymology: Scots speakers form "cannae" by fusing "canna," the Scots form of "can," with "nae," meaning "not." Scots kept "nae" from Old English "nā," so the word is a straightforward contraction of two native parts, much as "cannot" is in standard English. The spelling looks like the Latin place name Cannae, site of Hannibal's victory in 216 BC, but that resemblance is coincidental, since the Scots word has no connection to the Roman battlefield.