any of several Old World finches of the genus Serinus, esp. 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.
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).
A small finch (Serinus canaria) native to the Canary Islands that is greenish to yellow and has long been bred as a cage bird.
Slang
A woman singer.
An informer; a stool pigeon.
A sweet white wine from the Canary Islands, similar to Madeira.
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.]
[kuh-nair-ee] 
noun, plural -nar⋅ies, adjective 