canalled or canaled; canalling or canaling
: to construct a canal through or across
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
Jorge L. Ortiz, USA Today, 30 Mar. 2025
About 4% of the world’s maritime trade and more than 40% of US container traffic traverses canal.
—Chris Isidore, CNN Money, 28 Mar. 2025
Written partially in cuneiform—an ancient Middle Eastern writing system—the tablets contain records of state affairs, blueprints for buildings, maps of canals and accounts of commodities like livestock, fish, barley, cloth and gems.
—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 Mar. 2025
The early 20th century saw the introduction of dams, dredging, canals, and floodgates to divert and drain the waters of the Everglades.
—Stanley Stewart, Travel + Leisure, 17 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for canal
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Noun
That could be a boon for a body of water frequently called an accident, because its current version was created in 1905 when a canal breach allowed millions of gallons of Colorado River water to spill out for almost two years, filling a desert basin.
—Jorge L. Ortiz, USA Today, 30 Mar. 2025
About 4% of the world’s maritime trade and more than 40% of US container traffic traverses canal.
—Chris Isidore, CNN Money, 28 Mar. 2025
Written partially in cuneiform—an ancient Middle Eastern writing system—the tablets contain records of state affairs, blueprints for buildings, maps of canals and accounts of commodities like livestock, fish, barley, cloth and gems.
—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 Mar. 2025
The early 20th century saw the introduction of dams, dredging, canals, and floodgates to divert and drain the waters of the Everglades.
—Stanley Stewart, Travel + Leisure, 17 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for canal
Cite this Entry
“Canal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/canal. Accessed 2 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
canal
noun
ca·nal
kə-ˈnal 
: a tubular anatomical passage or channel : duct see alimentary canal, Haversian canal, inguinal canal
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