canary

noun

ca·​nary kə-ˈner-ē 

plural canaries

1

: a Canary Islands usually sweet wine similar to Madeira

2

: a lively 16th century court dance

3

: a small finch (Serinus canaria synonym S. canarius) of the Canary Islands that is usually greenish to yellow and is kept as a cage bird and singer

4

slang : informer sense 2

Synonyms

• betrayer
• deep throat
• fink
• informant
• informer
• nark [British]
• rat
• rat fink
• snitch
• snitcher
• squealer
• stool pigeon
• stoolie
• talebearer
• tattler
• tattletale
• telltale
• whistle-blower

Examples of canary in a Sentence

a canary who was singing and giving up the names of some of the city's most notorious drug lords

Recent Examples on the Web

But Sysco’s revised forecast could be the canary in the kitchen. —Catherine Baab, Quartz, 29 Apr. 2025

America’s small businesses could be the canaries in the coal mine. —Alicia Wallace, CNN Money, 20 Apr. 2025

The Clock Is Ticking Shopify’s hiring policy is the canary in the corporate coal mine. —Roger Dooley, Forbes.com, 8 Apr. 2025

From tropical parrots and toucans to charming songbirds like swallows and canaries, colorful avian creatures are poised to soar onto our homes’ walls this year. —Celia San Miguel, USA TODAY, 11 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle French canarie, from Old Spanish canario, from Islas Canarias Canary Islands

First Known Use

1592, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing canary

• canary seed
• canary yellow
• like the cat that ate/got/swallowed the canary

Rhymes for canary

• askari
• astbury
• azeri
• banbury
• barberry
• blackberry
• blueberry
• cranberry
• dentary
• dewberry
• dogberry
• equerry

Kids Definition

canary

noun

ca·​nary kə-ˈne(ə)r-ē 

plural canaries

: a small usually yellow or greenish finch native to the Canary Islands that is often kept in a cage