canton Meaning, Definition & Usage

noun a city on the Zhu Jiang delta in southern China; the capital of Guangdong province and a major deep-water port
Kwangchow; Guangzhou; Kuangchou.
noun a small administrative division of a country
verb provide housing for (military personnel)
billet; quarter.
verb divide into cantons, of a country

F. canton, augm. of OF. cant edge, corner. See 1st Cant.

A small portion; a division; a compartment.
That little canton of land called the "English pale" Davies.

There is another piece of Holbein's, . . . in which, in six several cantons, the several parts of our Savior's passion are represented. Bp. Burnet.
A small community or clan.
A small territorial district; esp. one of the twenty-two independent states which form the Swiss federal republic; in France, a subdivision of an arrondissement. See Arrondissement.
(Her.) A division of a shield occupying one third part of the chief, usually on the dexter side, formed by a perpendicular line from the top of the shield, meeting a horizontal line from the side.
The king gave us the arms of England to be borne in a canton in our arms. Evelyn.

Cf. F.cantonner.

imperfect & past participle Cantoned ; present participle & verbal noun Cantoning

To divide into small parts or districts; to mark off or separate, as a distinct portion or division.
They canton out themselves a little Goshen in the intellectual world. Locke.
(Mil.) To allot separate quarters to, as to different parts or divisions of an army or body of troops.