cantonist

C3A1N1T1O1N1I1S1T1

noun

A young boy in the Russian Empire who was taken to a special school to be trained for future compulsory military service.

OriginRussian кантонист →
Scrabble 11
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Meanings

nouncantonist (plural cantonists)

plural cantonists

  1. historicalA young boy in the Russian Empire who was taken to a special school to be trained for future compulsory military service.

Origin

  1. Russianкантонист
  2. Englishcantonist

Borrowed from Russian кантонист (kantonist).

More words from Russian

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

French cantoniste
  • cantonisteconscript in the Russian Empire
German Kantonist
  • Kantonistconscript in the Russian Empire
Russian кантонист
  • кантонист (kantonist)conscript in the Russian Empire
Yiddish קאַנטאָניסט
  • קאַנטאָניסט (kantonist)conscript in the Russian Empire

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Tocantinsnonstatic
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

“cantonist.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cantonist. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cantonist,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cantonist.

Source: cantonist on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.