canary

ca·nary

noun \kə-ˈner-ē\

: a small usually yellow or green tropical bird that is often kept in a cage

plural ca·nar·ies

Full Definition of CANARY

1

:  a Canary Islands usually sweet wine similar to Madeira

2

:  a lively 16th century court dance

3

:  a small finch (Serinus canarius syn. S. canaria) of the Canary Islands that is usually greenish to yellow and is kept as a cage bird and singer

4

slang :  informer 2

Examples of CANARY

1. <a canary who was singing and giving up the names of some of the city's most notorious drug lords>

Origin of CANARY

Middle French canarie, from Old Spanish canario, from Islas Canarias Canary Islands

First Known Use: 1584

Related to CANARY

Synonyms

betrayer, informer [slang], deep throat, fink, informant, nark [British], rat, rat fink, snitch, snitcher, squealer, stoolie, stool pigeon, talebearer, tattler, tattletale, telltale, whistle-blower

Related Words

collaborator; blabber, blabbermouth, gossip, gossiper, leaker; snoop, snooper, spy; notifier

Other Birds Terms

aerie, bunting, clutch, covey, hackle, ratite, rictus, ruff, skein, zygodactyl

Rhymes with CANARY

baneberry, barberry, bayberry, bearberry, bilberry, blackberry, black cherry, blaeberry, blueberry, Bradbury, bunchberry, Burberry, chokeberry, chokecherry, cloudberry, contrary, costmary, cowberry, cranberry, crowberry, deerberry, equerry, gooseberry, ground-cherry, hackberry, Hail Mary, inkberry, Juneberry, knobkerrie, library, mulberry, nondairy, pokeberry, primary, raspberry, rosemary, scalare, shadberry, snowberry, soapberry, strawberry, summary, sweet cherry, teaberry, tilbury, tooth fairy, twinberry, unwary, vagary, wheat berry, wolfberry, youngberry

canary

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Canary (Serinus canaria).—Eric Hosking

Popular cage bird (Serinus canaria; in the finch family, Fringillidae) that owes its coloration and sustained vocal powers to 400 years of selective breeding. Varieties called rollers trill almost continuously; choppers have a loud trill of distinct notes. Well-known breeds include Hartz Mountain, Norwich, and Yorkshire. The average life span of a caged canary is 10–15 years. The canary is native to the Canary, Azores, and Madeira islands. The wild form is streak-backed and mostly greenish brown.