canyon

noun

can·​yon ˈkan-yən 

variants or less commonly cañon

1

: a deep narrow valley with steep sides and often with a stream flowing through it

2

: something resembling a canyon

the city's concrete canyons

Synonyms

• col
• couloir
• defile
• flume
• gap
• gill [British]
• gorge
• gulch
• gulf
• kloof [South African]
• linn [chiefly Scottish]
• notch
• pass
• ravine
• saddle

Examples of canyon in a Sentence

as the scouts made their way through the canyon, they marveled at the sheer walls of rock on both sides

Recent Examples on the Web

They were found in a river canyon in Nevada County on Friday night, following an Amber Alert issued by Northern California authorities for a child abduction. —Daniel Hunt, Sacramento Bee, 8 June 2024

The 210,000-acre monument encompasses desert canyons in both Colorado and Utah where visitors can recreate and get a prehistory lesson. —Tiney Ricciardi, The Denver Post, 2 June 2024

Explore our new section The insects’ presence in East Canyon, along with nearby Rice and Whitney canyons, puts them just 14 miles from the oak-rich Santa Monica Mountains. —Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 28 May 2024

George had a fairly specific idea of where that green place was and how it was nestled and settled into a sandstone canyon. —Charlie Hobbs, Condé Nast Traveler, 24 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

American Spanish cañón, probably alteration of obsolete Spanish callón, augmentative of calle street, from Latin callis footpath

First Known Use

1834, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

canyon

noun

can·​yon

variants also cañon

ˈkan-yən

: a deep narrow valley with steep sides and often with a stream flowing through it