canal

1 of 2

noun

ca·​nal kə-ˈnal 

1

: a tubular anatomical passage or channel : duct

2

: channel, watercourse

3

: an artificial waterway for navigation or for draining or irrigating land

4

: any of various faint narrow lines on the planet Mars seen through telescopes and once thought by some to be canals built by Martians

canal

2 of 2

verb

canalled or canaled; canalling or canaling

transitive verb

: to construct a canal through or across

Synonyms

Noun

• aqueduct
• channel
• conduit
• course
• flume
• racecourse
• raceway
• watercourse
• waterway

Examples of canal in a Sentence

Noun

the Panama Canal opened a much easier and shorter passageway from the Atlantic to the Pacific

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Under pressure, a Hong Kong company sold off its two port facilities on the canal, drawing criticism from Beijing. —Chris Buckley, New York Times, 13 May 2025

With around 800 miles of rivers and canals, Burgundy has the largest network of inland waterways in France. —Rachel Howard, Travel + Leisure, 13 May 2025

Tourists visiting the city take boat trips on the canals in Amsterdam, Netherlands on May 25, 2024. —Jim Cramer, CNBC, 11 May 2025

Archaeologists began excavating a canal in downtown Utrecht as part of a large-scale redevelopment project, the Municipality of Utrecht said in a May 7 news release. —Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 8 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Latin canalis pipe, channel, from canna reed — more at cane

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1792, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing canal

• alimentary canal
• birth canal
• ear canal
• haversian canal
• resin canal
• root canal
• semicircular canal
• spinal canal
• stone canal
• vertebral canal

Rhymes for canal

• chorale
• corral
• ghazal
• locale
• morale
• royale
• bal
• dal
• gal
• mal
• pal
• sal

Kids Definition

canal

noun

ca·​nal

kə-ˈnal

1

: a tube-shaped bodily passage or channel : duct

2

: an artificial waterway for boats or for draining or irrigating land

3

: any of various faint narrow lines on the planet Mars seen through telescopes and formerly thought to be canals built by Martians

Medical Definition

canal

noun

ca·​nal kə-ˈnal 

: a tubular anatomical passage or channel : duct see alimentary canal, Haversian canal, inguinal canal