canaries

plural of canary, slang

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of canaries The Edge and Adam Clayton both release canaries into the air in slow motion. Al Shipley, SPIN, 26 June 2026 These living materials could also serve as canaries in the coal mine for water safety, glowing brighter or dimming in the presence of specific toxins. Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 7 May 2026 That principle is why coal miners once brought canaries underground, as one emergency medicine doctor explained in a recent court declaration. Lisa Song, ProPublica, 7 May 2026 If canaries in coal mines were harbingers of safe conditions, surely piping plovers at Waukegan Beach mean the city is overcoming its polluted past. Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 4 May 2026 The proverbial canaries in coal mines will then cause a recession. Jim Cramer, CNBC, 1 Mar. 2026 Make canaries and rollback standard. Rahul Dey, Forbes.com, 20 Feb. 2026 By crunching data from millions of monthly payroll records for workers in jobs with exposure to generative AI, the authors concluded that workers ages 22 to 25—the canaries—have seen about a 13 percent decline in employment since late 2022. Josh Tyrangiel, The Atlantic, 10 Feb. 2026 There are no canaries there either. Richard Lederer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for canaries
Noun
  • The task force is reportedly staffing up with officers who specialize in recruiting informants, intelligence analysis, cyber operations and covert influence campaigns.
    Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 6 Aug. 2026
  • In the morning, Nora stops by with information about confidential informants in the Candlelight Lounge case.
    Erin Qualey, Vulture, 27 July 2026
Noun
  • One of State Security’s main goals, as well as a central source of its strength, is turning civilians into informers.
    Abraham Jiménez Enoa, The Dial, 19 May 2026
  • And so every regime invests in having student informers.
    Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 23 Jan. 2026
Noun
  • Meg Murray's hobby of crafting small rats out of soft material turned into something much bigger - a tiny neighborhood attraction where anyone can stop by and adopt one.
    Crystal McQuay, CBS News, 5 Aug. 2026
  • In 1978, a Californian named Robb Moss, then twenty-eight, went on a five-week float trip through the Grand Canyon with a bunch of fellow river rats.
    Nick Paumgarten, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Canaries.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/canaries. Accessed 12 Aug. 2026.

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