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canary

[kuh-nair-ee]

Origin

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noun

any of several Old World finches of the genus Serinus, especially S. canaria (common canary), native to the Canary Islands and often kept as a pet, in the wild being greenish with brown streaks above and yellow below and in domesticated varieties usually bright yellow or pale yellow.

Also called canary yellow. a light, clear yellow color.

Slang. informer (def. 1).

Slang. a female singer, especially with a dance band.

a sweet white wine of the Canary Islands, resembling sherry.

EXPAND

a yellow diamond.

COLLAPSE

Canary's www.ask.com/Canary's Questions Canary's Canary's Answers

adjective

having the color canary.

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Canary is always a great word to know.

So is hang-up. Does it mean:

to deceive, cheat, or dupe

a preoccupation, fixation, or psychological block; a source of annoying difficulty or burden; a recurring snag

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Origin:
1585–95; < Spanish (Isla) Canaria < Latin Canāria (insula) Dog (Island), equivalent to can(is) dog + -āria, feminine of -ārius -ary

Dictionary.com Unabridged

plural noun

a group of mountainous islands in the Atlantic Ocean, near the NW coast of Africa, comprising two provinces of Spain. 1,138,801; 2894 sq. mi. (7495 sq. km).

Also called Ca·nar·ies.

Related forms

Ca·nar·i·an, adjective, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To Canary

Collins

World English Dictionary

canary (kəˈnɛərɪ)

—n , pl -naries
1.	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.	See canary yellow
3.	(Austral) history 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 & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

canary

type of small songbird, 1650s (short for Canary-bird, 1570s), from Fr. canarie, from Sp. canario "canary bird," lit. "of the Canary Islands," from L. Insula Canaria "Canary Island," largest of the Fortunate Isles, lit. "island of dogs," (canis, gen. canarius) so called because large dogs lived there.

EXPAND

The name was extended to the whole island group (Canariæ Insulæ) by the time of Arnobius (c.300). As a type of wine (from the Canary Islands) from 1580s.

COLLAPSE

Slang Dictionary

canary definition

[kəˈnɛri]

n.
a female singer. : The band had a cute canary who could really sing.
n.
a capsule of Nembutal, a barbiturate. (Drugs. The capsule is yellow.) : There are a couple of blues, which ought to do the same as canaries.
n.
a police informer who sings to the police. (See also stool (pigeon).) : Spike is no canary. He would never squeal on us.

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

canary

see look like the cat that ate the canary.