canal

1 of 2

noun

ca·​nal kə-ˈnal 

1

: a tubular anatomical passage or channel : duct

2

: channel, watercourse

3

: an artificial waterway for navigation or for draining or irrigating land

4

: any of various faint narrow lines on the planet Mars seen through telescopes and once thought by some to be canals built by Martians

canal

2 of 2

verb

canalled or canaled; canalling or canaling

transitive verb

: to construct a canal through or across

Synonyms of canal

Noun

• aqueduct
• waterway

Examples of canal in a Sentence

Noun

the Panama Canal opened a much easier and shorter passageway from the Atlantic to the Pacific

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) told CBS News Miami that the crocodile was captured and removed from the canal in South Patrick Shores following the incident. —Kirsty Hatcher, PEOPLE, 3 Nov. 2025

This is a type of vertigo that happens when canaliths, which are small pieces of calcium, are floating inside your inner ear canals. —Jakob Roze, Health, 2 Nov. 2025

Venice, which begins at the tail end of August, is all glitz and a gloss of European worldliness, perfect for photo ops of big stars in boats along canals and for the canceled to test the waters to see how temperate the reception for their return might be. —Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025

Data centers deteriorate rapidly, unlike the more durable infrastructure of canals, railroads, or even fiber-optic cables. —Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 30 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Latin canalis pipe, channel, from canna reed — more at cane

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1792, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing canal

• alimentary canal
• birth canal
• ear canal
• haversian canal
• resin canal
• root canal
• semicircular canal
• spinal canal
• stone canal
• vertebral canal

Rhymes for canal

• chorale
• corral
• ghazal
• locale
• morale
• royale
• bal
• dal
• gal
• mal
• pal
• sal

Kids Definition

canal

noun

ca·​nal

kə-ˈnal

1

: a tube-shaped bodily passage or channel : duct

2

: an artificial waterway for boats or for draining or irrigating land

3

: any of various faint narrow lines on the planet Mars seen through telescopes and formerly thought to be canals built by Martians

Medical Definition

canal

noun

ca·​nal kə-ˈnal 

: a tubular anatomical passage or channel : duct see alimentary canal, Haversian canal, inguinal canal