You're thrilled to hear work has been cancelled due to a power outage, but definitely not so happy when your date calls to cancel. Cancelled comes from the Latin word cancellare, which means "to make resemble a lattice" — that fencing with all the crisscrossed wood pieces. So originally, something that was cancelled had been crossed out with lattice-like lines, just like you'd mark an appointment on the calendar that's been rescheduled.