Canvass — Defs

01 v. t. To sift; to strain; to examine thoroughly; to scrutinize; as, to canvass the votes cast at an election; to canvass a district with referenc…

imp. & p. p. canvassed; p. pr. & vb. n. Canvassing

1.
To sift; to strain; to examine thoroughly; to scrutinize; as, to canvass the votes cast at an election; to canvass a district with reference to its probable vote.
“I have made careful search on all hands, and canvassed the matter with all possible diligence.” — Woodward.
2.
To examine by discussion; to debate.
“An opinion that we are likely soon to canvass.” — Sir W. Hamilton.
3.
To go through, with personal solicitation or public addresses; as, to canvass a district for votes; to canvass a city for subscriptions.

02 v. i. To search thoroughly; to engage in solicitation by traversing a district; as, to canvass for subscriptions or for votes; to canvass for a b…

1.
To search thoroughly; to engage in solicitation by traversing a district; as, to canvass for subscriptions or for votes; to canvass for a book, a publisher, or in behalf of a charity; -- commonly followed by for.

03 n. Close inspection; careful review for verification; as, a canvass of votes.

1.
Close inspection; careful review for verification; as, a canvass of votes.
2.
Examination in the way of discussion or debate.
3.
Search; exploration; solicitation; systematic effort to obtain votes, subscribers, etc.
“No previous canvass was made for me.” — Burke.