A canister is a strong metal container. It is used to hold gases or chemical substances.
Riot police hurled tear gas canisters and smoke bombs into the crowd.
...canisters of commercial fuel. [+ of]
2. countable noun
A canister is a metal, plastic, or china container with a lid. It is used for storing food such as sugar and flour.
3. countable noun
A canister is a flat round container. It is usually made of metal and is used to store photographic film.
She bought a travel-bag large enough to contain the film canisters.
canister in British English
(ˈkænɪstə)
noun
1.
a container, usually made of metal, in which dry food, such as tea or coffee, is stored
2. (formerly)
a.
a type of shrapnel shell for firing from a cannon
b. Also called: canister shot, case shot
the shot or shrapnel packed inside this
Word origin
C17: from Latin canistrum basket woven from reeds, from Greek kanastron, from kanna reed, cane1
canister in American English
(ˈkænɪstər)
noun
1.
a small box or can for coffee, tea, tobacco, etc.
2.
a boxlike vacuum cleaner
3. Obsolete
lead or iron shot in a container that scattered its contents when fired
: in full canister shot
4.
the part of a gas mask that contains the substances for filtering the air to be breathed
Word origin
ME < L canistrum, wicker basket < Gr kanastron < kanna, a reed: see cane
Examples of 'canister' in a sentence
canister
He was left unconscious when a tear gas canister hit him.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
During the gun battle police shot tear gas canisters into the cabin.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
It contains a canister that releases small quantities of nicotine.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
One man standing in the middle of the park was hit on the head by a gas canister.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Our mystery men soon establish the fact that their amnesia has resulted from inhaling the leaked contents of a punctured gas canister.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
He fires a tear gas canister into the crowd, but to no avail.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Looking down, he sees a small metal canister.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
The Jeep was also packed with gas canisters and fuel but failed to explode.
The Sun (2008)
This time, smoke canisters will be used.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
He handed me a plastic container the size of a film canister, with a little spatula attached.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
During the night, a group of them discovered a canister containing a selection of drugs in an unlocked cupboard.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
A smoke canister or two were let off, red smoke drifting over us.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
The police attempted to clear a path for their colleagues to leave the square, launching canisters of tear gas to try to disperse the crowd.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Cops found burnt clothes, a fuel canister, a rucksack and notes in the car park.
The Sun (2012)
French police fired dozens of tear gas canisters in an effort to push the migrants back into the Jungle, the makeshift camp that is their home.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Two deaths have been attributed to the violence, including that of a 51-year-old woman who suffered a heart attack when a police tear gas canister exploded nearby.