Canister vs. Can — What's the Difference?
By Tayyaba Rehman — Updated on November 2, 2023
A canister is a cylindrical container with a lid, often used for storing dry goods, while a can is a typically metal container, used for liquids or preserved foods.
Difference Between Canister and Can
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
A canister usually refers to a container that's often cylindrical, comes with a lid, and is used for storing various items, especially dry goods like coffee, tea, or sugar. Canisters are often found in kitchens for storage purposes and can be made from a variety of materials including glass, plastic, or metal.
A can, on the other hand, is typically a metal container that's used for holding liquids, foods, or other products. Cans are commonly used for beverages like soda or beer and for preserving foods like soups or vegetables. They are usually sealed and need to be opened with a can opener or a pull tab.
Canisters are often reusable and designed for long-term use. They come in various sizes and are commonly used in households for storing food items in a way that is both convenient and aesthetically pleasing. Canisters often have airtight seals to keep contents fresh.
Cans are generally not reusable in the same way as canisters. They are designed for single-use, especially when it comes to food and beverage packaging. Cans are also used for products like paint, aerosols, and other industrial goods. They are valued for their durability and ability to preserve contents for long periods.
Comparison Chart
Primary Use
Storing dry goods
Holding liquids or preserved foods
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Material
Glass, plastic, metal
Mainly metal
Reusability
Often reusable
Typically single-use
Lid
Comes with a lid
Sealed, needs opening tool
Common Contexts
Kitchen storage
Food and beverage packaging
Compare with Definitions
Canister
Holder for dry goods
The sugar canister was nearly empty.
Can
Sealed vessel
He shook the paint can vigorously.
Canister
Cylinder-shaped vessel
The canister held loose tea leaves.
Can
Be able to
He can't afford it
They can run fast
I could hear footsteps
Canister
Container with a lid
He placed cookies in the canister.
Can
Be permitted to
You can use the phone if you want to
Nobody could legally drink on the premises
Canister
A round or cylindrical container used for storing such things as food, chemicals, or rolls of film.
Can
Used to request someone to do something
Can you open the window?
Can't you leave me alone?
Canister
A box or can of thin metal or plastic used for holding dry foodstuffs or cooking ingredients, such as flour or sugar.
Can
Preserve (food) in a can
Sardines and anchovies are worth the extra money if canned in olive oil
Canister
A small plastic container used for storing a roll of film.
Can
Dismiss from a job
He was canned because of a tiff over promotion
Canister
A metal container that holds pressurized gas, as one containing tear gas that explodes on impact or one containing oxygen as part of a breathing apparatus.
Can
A cylindrical metal container
A can of paint
A petrol can
Canister
A metallic cylinder packed with shot that scatter upon discharge from a cannon, formerly used as an antipersonnel round.
Can
Prison
Our friends will get a year or two in the can
Canister
Such cylinders, or the shot used in such cylinders, considered as a group.
Can
The toilet
She walks in and has to use the can
Canister
The part of a gas mask that contains the filter for removing toxic agents from the air.
Can
Headphones.
Canister
A cylindrical or rectangular container usually of lightweight metal, plastic, or laminated pasteboard used for holding a dry product (as tea, crackers, flour, matches).
Can
A woman's breasts.
Canister
Any of various cylindrical metal receptacles usually with a removable close-fitting top.
Can
A usually cylindrical metal container.
Canister
A special short-range antipersonnel projectile consisting of a casing of light metal, loaded with preformed submissiles such as flechettes or steel balls. The casing is designed to open just beyond the muzzle of the weapon, dispersing the submissiles.
Can
An airtight container, usually made of tin-coated iron, in which foods or beverages are preserved.
Canister
A projectile component containing colored or screening smoke or riot control agent composition.
Can
The contents of such a container
Ate a can of beans.
Canister
A component of canister-type protective masks containing a mechanical filter and chemical filling to filter, neutralize and/or absorb toxic chemical, biological and radiological agents.
Can
(Slang) A jail or prison.
Canister
Part of a windmill that connects the sails to the windshaft.
Can
(Slang) A toilet or restroom.
Canister
(transitive) To pack into a canister.
Can
(Slang) The buttocks.
Canister
A small basket of rushes, reeds, or willow twigs, etc.
Can
(Slang) A naval destroyer.
Canister
A small box or case for holding tea, coffee, etc.
Can
To seal in an airtight container for future use; preserve
Canning peaches.
Canister
A kind of case shot for cannon, in which a number of lead or iron balls in layers are inclosed in a case fitting the gun; - called also canister shot.
Can
(Slang) To make a recording of
Can the audience's applause for a TV comedy show.
Canister
A metallic cylinder packed with shot and used as ammunition in a firearm
Can
To end the employment of; fire.
Canister
Metal container for storing dry foods such as tea or flour
Can
To put an end or stop to
Canned the TV show after one season.
Told the students to can the chatter.
Canister
Storage container
She filled the canister with flour.
Can
To solicit cash donations for a charity or other organization such as a club or amateur sports team by holding out a can or other container in a public place.
Canister
Reusable vessel
The glass canister stored pasta.
Can
To know how to; to be able to.
She can speak English, French, and German.
I can play football.
Can you remember your fifth birthday?
Can
May; to be permitted or enabled to.
You can go outside and play when you're finished with your homework.
Can I use your pen?
Can
(modal auxiliary verb, defective) To have the potential to; be possible.
Can it be Friday already?
Teenagers can really try their parents' patience.
Animals can experience emotions.
Can
Used with verbs of perception.
Can you hear that?.
I can feel the baby moving inside me.
Can
To know.
Can
To seal in a can.
They canned air to sell as a novelty to tourists.
Can
To preserve by heating and sealing in a jar or can.
They spent August canning fruit and vegetables.
Can
To discard, scrap or terminate (an idea, project, etc.).
He canned the whole project because he thought it would fail.
Can
To shut up.
Can your gob.
Can
To fire or dismiss an employee.
The boss canned him for speaking out.
Can
To hole the ball.
Can
(transitive) To cover (the fuel element in a nuclear reactor) with a protective cover.
Can
A more or less cylindrical vessel for liquids, usually of steel or aluminium, but sometimes of plastic, and with a carrying handle over the top.
Can
A container used to carry and dispense water for plants (a watering can).
Can
A tin-plate canister, often cylindrical, for preserved foods such as fruit, meat, or fish.
Can
A chamber pot, now a toilet or lavatory.
Shit or get off the can.
Bob's in the can. You can wait a few minutes or just leave it with me.
Can
Buttocks.
Can
(slang) Jail or prison.
Bob's in the can. He won't be back for a few years.
Can
Headphones.
Can
(archaic) A drinking cup.
Can
(nautical) A cube-shaped buoy or marker used to denote a port-side lateral mark
Can
A chimney pot.
Can
An E-meter used in Scientology auditing.
Can
An ounce (or sometimes, two ounces) of marijuana.
Can
A protective cover for the fuel element in a nuclear reactor.
Can
An obs. form of began, imp. & p. p. of Begin, sometimes used in old poetry. [See Gan.]
With gentle words he can faile gree.
Can
A drinking cup; a vessel for holding liquids.
Fill the cup and fill can,Have a rouse before the morn.
Can
A vessel or case of tinned iron or of sheet metal, of various forms, but usually cylindrical; as, a can of tomatoes; an oil can; a milk can.
Can
To preserve by putting in sealed cans
Can
To know; to understand.
I can rimes of Rodin Hood.
I can no Latin, quod she.
Let the priest in surplice white,That defunctive music can.
Can
To be able to do; to have power or influence.
The will of Him who all things can.
For what, alas, can these my single arms?
Mæcænas and Agrippa, who can most with Cæsar.
Can
To be able; - followed by an infinitive without to; as, I can go, but do not wish to.
Yet he could not but acknowledge to himself that there was something calculated to impress awe, . . . in the sudden appearances and vanishings . . . of the masque
Tom felt that this was a rebuff for him, and could not but understand it as a left-handed hit at his employer.
Can
Airtight sealed metal container for food or drink or paint etc.
Can
The quantity contained in a can
Can
A buoy with a round bottom and conical top
Can
The fleshy part of the human body that you sit on;
He deserves a good kick in the butt
Are you going to sit on your fanny and do nothing?
Can
A plumbing fixture for defecation and urination
Can
A room equipped with toilet facilities
Can
Preserve in a can or tin;
Tinned foods are not very tasty
Can
Terminate the employment of;
The boss fired his secretary today
The company terminated 25% of its workers
Can
Metal container
He opened a can of beans.
Can
Beverage holder
She grabbed a soda can.
Can
Food preserver
The pantry was stocked with canned vegetables.
Can
Single-use container
She recycled the empty can.
Common Curiosities
Can cans be reused?
Typically not, they’re mainly single-use.
Can a can be made of materials other than metal?
Rarely, they’re mostly metal.
Do canisters need a can opener?
No, they come with removable lids.
Is a canister always cylindrical?
Mostly, but not exclusively.
Do canisters come in different sizes?
Yes, they vary in size.
Can a canister be used for liquids?
Less common, but possible.
Are cans used for industrial products?
Yes, like paint or aerosols.
Do canisters preserve food?
They can, especially if airtight.
Are cans environmentally friendly?
They’re recyclable but single-use.
Are canisters airtight?
Many are designed to be.
Are all cans sealed?
Yes, especially those for food and drinks.
Can canisters be decorative?
Yes, many have aesthetic designs.
Are cans safe for food storage?
Yes, when used as intended.
Can cans be made of glass?
Not typically, cans are mainly metal.
Are canisters used outside the kitchen?
Yes, for various storage needs.
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Written by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
