cañón
/kaˈɲon/masculine
The Spanish word for "cannon" is cañón.
cañón refers to an artillery piece. It is also used in the idiomatic phrase carne de cañón, which means "cannon fodder" and describes people who are regarded as expendable.
Meaning: artillery piece (noun)
Which one should you use?
The plural form of cañón is cañones.
How do you pronounce it?
/kaˈɲon/
Did you know?
Examples in context
- A los soldados los consideraban carne de cañón.The soldiers were regarded as cannon fodder.This sentence is useful for seeing how the idiom carne de cañón is used.Tatoeba #3399786 by gianich73, translation #3399677 by Balamax
- El sonido de un beso no es tan fuerte como el de un cañón, pero su eco dura mucho más tiempo.The sound of a kiss is not as loud as that of a cannon, but its echo lasts much longer.This sentence uses cañón to compare the loudness of a kiss and a cannon.Tatoeba #2868941 by cueyayotl, translation #2839249 by AlanF_US
- Ese cañón parece muy endeble.That cannon looks rather flimsy.This sentence shows the word cañón being used to describe an object as flimsy.Tatoeba #8673846 by ajje, translation #8673850 by ajje
- El cañón disparó un proyectil a gran velocidad.The cannon fired a projectile at high velocity.
- Necesitamos una pieza de artillería más potente para ganar la batalla.We need a more powerful piece of artillery to win the battle.
- ¡El cañón de la fortaleza parece imponente!The fortress cannon looks imposing!
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two museum visitors are looking at an old exhibit.
- MaríaMira ese cañón de bronce.Look at that bronze cannon.
- AlejandroEs un cañón impresionante, María.It is an impressive cannon, María.
- María¿De qué época es el cañón?What era is the cannon from?
- AlejandroEl cañón parece ser del siglo dieciocho.The cannon seems to be from the eighteenth century.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “cannon” translations and entries cañón, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cañón, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
