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.-to examine by discussion; to debate.-to go trough, with personal solicitation or public addresses; as, to canvass a district for votes; to canvass a city for subscriptions.-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.-close inspection; careful review for verification; as, a canvass of votes.-examination in the way of discussion or debate.-search; exploration; solicitation; systematic effort to obtain votes, subscribers, etc.