Thesaurus results for CANARY

canary

noun

kə-ˈner-ē

Definition of canary

slang

as in informant

a person who provides information about another's wrongdoing a canary who was singing and giving up the names of some of the city's most notorious drug lords

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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 canary She was also spotted at Royal Ascot alongside William, posing for photos in a canary-yellow dress. — Jennifer Hassan, USA Today, 6 July 2026 Measles is the canary in the coal mine for vaccination and public health, and at this moment, the canary is singing a doleful tune. — Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2026 At Michigan and elsewhere, losing one of college basketball’s brightest minds was viewed as another canary in the increasingly toxic coal mine of college sports. — Austin Meek, New York Times, 30 June 2026 Restaurants As The Canary The restaurant industry is a useful canary for any business watching this dynamic. — Michael Lukianoff, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for canary

Recent Examples of Synonyms for canary

Noun

Diiorio tried to pay a confidential informant to kill her ex-boyfriend, a Philadelphia police officer, and his then 19-year-old daughter, the Camden County Prosecutor's Office in New Jersey first reported in April 2025.

— Natalie Neysa Alund, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2026
Among the cooperating witnesses expected to testify is Joseph Vincent, a former Drug Enforcement Administration informant who did not testify in the first trial.

— Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of informant

Noun

Sazan is a rugged place—strewn with rocks and tangles of trees, populated by a large colony of rats, and studded with bunkers built by the Marxist dictator Enver Hoxha to defend against an imaginary invasion.

— Dexter Filkins, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2026
In the special — watch a clip above — Morril tackles his worst one-night stand gone wrong, the dark humor of infamous assassinations, his bizarrely unorthodox war against rats, and more.

— Matt Grobar, Deadline, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of rat

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“Canary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/canary. Accessed 16 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of canary

noun

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