can not

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can not

verb

alternative Alternative form of cannot One ſayth this and a nother that / but can not agre. Nether can any of them make ſo ſtronge a reaſon vvhich a nother can not improve.
Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see can, not. This “IV negation”, with emphatic stress, shows up in sentences like You can nót go to the party (“You have the option of not going to the party”) and You can’t nót go to the party (“You have no choice but to go to the party”).

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MLA

"can not." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/can%20not. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

can not. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/can%20not

Chicago

"can not." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/can%20not.

BibTeX

@misc{can_not_2026,
  title = {can not},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/can%20not},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}