canary

noun

ca·​nary kə-ˈner-ē 

plural canaries

1

: a Canary Islands usually sweet wine similar to Madeira

2

: a lively 16th century court dance

3

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

4

slang : informer sense 2

Synonyms of canary

• informant
• informer
• rat

Examples of canary in a Sentence

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

Recent Examples on the Web

Meta’s recent mass layoffs on its AI team are a potential canary in the coal mine, signaling that AI companies might be realizing the boom is coming to an end. —Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2025

But some of the interiors seem to belong to another house, like a cheap-looking finished basement with canary-yellow walls and a bathroom with, oddly, a urinal. —Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 28 Oct. 2025

Like canaries in the coal mine ocean form. —Ashley Miznazi, Miami Herald, 16 Oct. 2025

Here’s what the canaries are telling us. —Big Think, 13 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

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

First Known Use

1592, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing canary

• canary seed
• canary yellow
• like the cat that ate/got/swallowed the canary

Rhymes for canary

• askari
• astbury
• azeri
• banbury
• barberry
• blackberry
• blueberry
• cranberry
• dentary
• dewberry
• dogberry
• equerry

Kids Definition

canary

noun

ca·​nary kə-ˈne(ə)r-ē 

plural canaries

: a small usually yellow or greenish finch native to the Canary Islands that is often kept in a cage