canary

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canary

a yellow songbird native to the Canary Islands; a stool pigeon, informer: The traitor sang like a canary.
Not to be confused with:
cannery – a place where food is canned: The cannery produced several thousand cans of food a day.
Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree

ca·nar·y

 (kə-nâr′ē)
n. pl. ca·nar·ies
1. A small finch (Serinus canaria) native to the Canary Islands that is greenish to yellow and has long been bred as a cage bird.
2. Slang
a. A woman singer.
b. An informer; a stool pigeon.
3. A sweet white wine from the Canary Islands, similar to Madeira.
4. A light to moderate or vivid yellow.

[French canari, from Spanish canario, of the Canary Islands, from (Islas) Canarias, Canary (Islands), from Late Latin Canāriae (Īnsulae), (islands) of dogs, from Latin canārius, pertaining to dogs, canine, from canis, dog; see kwon- in Indo-European roots.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

canary

(kəˈnɛərɪ)
n, pl -naries
1. (Animals) a small finch, Serinus canaria, of the Canary Islands and Azores: a popular cagebird noted for its singing. Wild canaries are streaked yellow and brown, but most domestic breeds are pure yellow
2. (Colours) See canary yellow
3. history Austral a convict
4. archaic a sweet wine from the Canary Islands similar to Madeira
[C16: from Old Spanish canario of or from the Canary Islands]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ca•nar•y

(kəˈnɛər i)

n., pl. -nar•ies.
1. a small, sweetly singing greenish yellow finch, Serinus canaria, of the Canary Islands and vicinity, often a brilliant to pale yellow in varieties bred as cage birds.
2. a light, clear yellow color.
3. Slang. informer (def. 1).
4. a sweet white wine of the Canary Islands.
[1585–95; < Sp (Isla)Canaria]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.canary - someone acting as an informer or decoy for the police
betrayer, blabber, informer, squealer, rat - one who reveals confidential information in return for money
2.canary - a female singer
colloquialism - a colloquial expression; characteristic of spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech
singer, vocalist, vocalizer, vocaliser - a person who sings
3.canary - a moderate yellow with a greenish tinge
yellow, yellowness - yellow color or pigment; the chromatic color resembling the hue of sunflowers or ripe lemons
4.canary - any of several small Old World finchescanary - any of several small Old World finches
finch - any of numerous small songbirds with short stout bills adapted for crushing seeds
genus Serinus, Serinus - Old World finches; e.g. canaries and serins
common canary, Serinus canaria - native to the Canary Islands and Azores; popular usually yellow cage bird noted for its song
Adj.1.canary - having the color of a canary; of a light to moderate yellow
chromatic - being or having or characterized by hue
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
Translations
عُصْفور كَناريكَنَاريّ
кaнaрчe
canari
kanárkanárek
kanariefugl
kanario
kanarialintu
kanarinac
kanárikanárimadárkanárisárga
burungkenari
kanarífugl
canarinocanarino domesticocanario
カナリアカナリヤ金糸雀
카나리아
canaria fringilla
kanarėlė
kanārijputniņš
kanárik
kanarček
kanariefågel
นกขมิ้น
chim hoàng yến

canary

[kəˈnɛərɪ]
A. Ncanario m
B. CPD the Canary Islands NPLlas Islas Canarias
canary seed Nalpiste m
canary yellow Namarillo m canario
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

canary

[kəˈnɛəri] ncanari m, serin m
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

canary

n
(old, = wine) → Kanarienwein m (old)
(dated US, sl, = female singer) → Sängerin f
attr (colour: also canary yellow) → kanariengelb
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

canary

[kəˈnɛərɪ] ncanarino
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

canary

(kəˈneəri) plural caˈnaries noun
a type of small, yellow, singing bird, kept as a pet.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

canary

كَنَاريّ kanár kanariefugl Kanarienvogel καναρίνι canario kanarialintu canari kanarinac canarino カナリア 카나리아 kanarie kanarifugl kanarek canário канарейка kanariefågel นกขมิ้น kanarya chim hoàng yến 金丝雀
Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009