Chinook

noun

Chi·​nook shə-ˈnu̇k  -ˈnük 

chə-

plural Chinook or Chinooks

1

: a member of an Indigenous people of the north shore of the Columbia River at its mouth

2

: a Chinookan language of the Chinook and other nearby peoples

3

or less commonly chinook

a

: a warm moist southwest wind of the coast from Oregon northward

b

: a warm dry wind that descends the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains

4

or less commonly chinook plural chinook also chinooks : chinook salmon

5

: any of a rare breed of large, muscular dogs that were developed in New Hampshire in the early 1900s as sled and working dogs and have a yellow, reddish-yellow, or yellowish-brown coat and calm temperament

Among the dogs he [Arthur Treadwell Walden] used for breeding the Chinook were descendants of Admiral Peary's Greenland expedition huskies, along with mastiff-types.

—John Nolan

Examples of Chinook in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The state’s water plan is designed in part to save endangered fish species including Chinook salmon and Delta smelt from extinction in the environmentally sensitive ecosystem. —Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 8 Jan. 2025

In the Rocky Mountains, Chinook winds bring rapid warming and dry air, often melting snow. —Kevin Lynn, Newsweek, 7 Jan. 2025

The Southern Resident population is threatened by a decline in numbers of Chinook salmon, a key component of their diet, as well as increasing pollution and boat disturbances in the Salish Sea, which encompasses Puget Sound, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. —Corinne Purtill, Los Angeles Times, 5 Jan. 2025

The whales have been struggling amid a scarcity of high-quality prey to eat, mainly Chinook salmon. —Adeel Hassan, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Lower Chehalis (Salishan language of western Washington) c̓inúk, name of a Chinook village

First Known Use

1795, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing Chinook

• Chinook jargon
• Chinook salmon

Kids Definition

Chinook

noun

Chi·​nook shə-ˈnu̇k  chə- 

plural Chinook or Chinooks

: a member of an Indigenous people of Oregon

also : their language