Can, as in able to, or cahn with a soft “h”. I hear it both ways from those who should know.
Bonus: French pronunciation.
Thanks,
mangeorge
Your second guess is closer. The word has two syllables in French, the second with a schwa vowel, sounding something like “CAN-neuh”. It’s pronounced almost like one syllable though, with the last part practically inaudible. I hope that makes sense…
The pronunciation of English can in many British dialects (e.g. RP) is pretty much on the mark. This vowel in Parisian French is midway between those in Midwestern American English lack and lock, with a slight cheat towards the latter.
I would think that so long as the vowel isn’t drawled (“cay-un”), either of the pronunciations in the OP would be acceptable to a native French speaker … certainly understandable in context.
…As in Madeline Kahn, with an extra emphasis on the “n” so it makes the little half syllable xnylder’s talking about.
Khaaaaaaaaaaaan!!!
Sorry, I Cannes’t.
The flip side to this question is how should an American pronounce Cairns? You damn R swallowing Aussies make it completely confusing. I’ve noticed Americans pronouncing it Cairns, all letters pronounced sort of like hair with and -ns appended to it. I prefer the bastardization “cans” like, I can’t believe all the great sets of cans you see in Cairns.
I think I know what you’re trying to say, but what I would say is that the word has one syllable, but the ‘n’ sound tends to drag on a little while the tone drops.
My general rule of thumb is to pronounce it as close to the way the natives do, without inventing new sounds that don’t naturally occur to you. So, I say “Cans”, since I can. Not identical to the way an Aussie would say it, but close enough. Of course I’m from New England, so I’m no stranger to swallowing an “R” now and then. 
Yeah, but then you cough it up where it doesn’t belong, as in “sawr”, the past tense of “see”. (That final "r’ also helps distinguish it from the tool you use to cut wood, which is always “saw”)
Come on folks you were asked to pronounce it, not write about how it is pronounced…so altogether now…C
I seem to remember trying this a while back, and getting stomped, but here goes…
In France the ‘long a’ as in RP ‘car’ or ‘genghis khan’ is uncommon, except along the border with Germany. You sometimes hear it in old movies (Jean Gabin) and in some of the more affected parisian ‘underclass slang’. Some ‘purists’ will use that sound in words with a circumflex ‘a’, such as ‘plâtre’, but it’s getting to be rare. In Paris, Cannes is pronounced pretty much like an American newscaster saying “because he can”, but with a slightly shorter vowel sound, and a nasalized ‘n’. In some mediterranean accents (though not so much in Cannes itself), the ‘a’ sound is a little more complex, and the ‘n’ gets a little more traction - like ‘kay-eng’, but one syllable. Some people in the Mediterranean ‘back country’ may add a second syllable to the word if it’s followed by a consonant sound - ‘je descends à Cannes-neuh ce weekend’.
I should probably learn to write phonetic symbols one of these days.
‘Cannes’ has a nasal N? I had no idea.
Well, in the south the ‘n’ is often clearly articulated, but away from the Mediterranean the ‘n’ is much less apparent, although still slightly stronger than in ‘cain’ for example. Then again, if we get into the difference between ‘teint’ ‘ton’ ‘tant’ etc. I’m definitely giving up !
Now that that’s settled, how does one pronounce Caen, the city in Normandy?
I’ve always heard it pronounced like French “quand”. The really non-intuitive one is Reims - something like “Rance”, I think.
Just don’t pronounce “Caen” with the lips at all rounded, because that would make “con” – a naughty word.
Go to Cairns in northeast Australia. Ask one of the townfolk to pronounce the name of their city.
What you hear is pretty close.
Not 'barbie" I hope!
I was talking to a guy from Down Under, and he said ever time he talked to someone here, all they wanted to talk about was barbies. He claimed that they eat hot dogs and waffled and such. 
He was pretty cool about it, and he loved California.
I get the impression that Aussies don’t travel a lot.
How about Saint Saens?
“Sahn- Sohn”??? with the final "s’ getting lost?