canalled or canaled; canalling or canaling
: to construct a canal through or across
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
Melina Walling, Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 2026
Based on the crest fossil’s inner vascular canals and exterior texture, the team theorizes that the cranial accessory was likely housed in keratin and brightly colored.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 19 Feb. 2026
Analysis of the bone’s vascular canals and surface texture suggests this massive blade was sheathed in a keratinous horn, much like a modern bird’s beak.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 19 Feb. 2026
Edgar Rice Burroughs’ A Princess of Mars (1912) tells the story of John Carter, a Civil War soldier mysteriously transported to a Mars inhabited by aliens who dwell along the desert world’s life-giving canals.
—Big Think, 19 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for canal
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
Decades of levees and shipping channels destroyed protective ecosystems, leaving the region vulnerable to hurricanes; the closure of a key canal is enabling restoration.
—Melina Walling, Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 2026
Based on the crest fossil’s inner vascular canals and exterior texture, the team theorizes that the cranial accessory was likely housed in keratin and brightly colored.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 19 Feb. 2026
Analysis of the bone’s vascular canals and surface texture suggests this massive blade was sheathed in a keratinous horn, much like a modern bird’s beak.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 19 Feb. 2026
Edgar Rice Burroughs’ A Princess of Mars (1912) tells the story of John Carter, a Civil War soldier mysteriously transported to a Mars inhabited by aliens who dwell along the desert world’s life-giving canals.
—Big Think, 19 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for canal
Cite this Entry
“Canal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/canal. Accessed 20 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
canal
noun
ca·nal
kə-ˈnal 
: a tubular anatomical passage or channel : duct see alimentary canal, Haversian canal, inguinal canal
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
