TOP

Definition of Canute noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Canute

noun
 
/kəˈnjuːt/
 
/kəˈnuːt/
jump to other results
  1. a Danish king of England (1017–35). He is remembered for standing in front of the sea in order to show people that he was not able to order the water that was moving in towards the land to turn back. The story is often changed to suggest that Canute really thought that he could turn back the sea.
    • Like Canute, the prime minister will not be able to turn this tide.
    Topics Difficulty and failurec2
halfway
adverb
 
 
From the Word list
Oxford 5000
C1
Oxford Learner's Dictionaries Word of the Day