ca canny

verb

To go carefully or slowly; to take care.

OriginScots ca canny →
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Meanings

verb

alternative ca' canny · alternative caw canny

  1. ScotlandTo go carefully or slowly; to take care.

    I walked away from the fire and tore up green bracken, caw-cannying not to slash my fingers on stalks.

    1995, Alan Warner, Morvern Callar, Vintage, published 2015, page 79
    1 more example

    […] the inevitable result was that the willing horses were overworked. It was a point of honour not to ca’ canny.

    1922, Apsley Cherry-Garrard, The Worst Journey in the World
nounca canny (uncountable)

alternative ca' canny · alternative caw canny

  1. alternativeuncountableAlternative form of ca' canny.

Origin

  1. Scotsca canny
  2. Scotsca canny
  3. Englishca canny

Borrowed from Scots ca canny.

More words from Scots

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

ca canny. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ca%20canny

MLA

“ca canny.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ca%20canny. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ca canny,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ca%20canny.

Source: ca canny on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.