Canary
Pronunciation
Origin
From French canarie, from Spanish canario, from the Latin Canariae insulae ("Canary Islands") (Spanish Islas Canarias); from the largest island Insula Canaria ("Dog Island" or "Canine Island"), named for its dogs, from canÄrius ("canine"), from canis ("dog").
Full definition of canary
Noun
canary
(plural canaries)- A small, usually yellow, finch (genus Serinus), a songbird native to the Canary Islands.
- Any of various small birds of different countries, most of which are largely yellow in colour.
- A light, slightly greenish, yellow colour.
- A light, sweet, white wine from the Canary Islands.
- 1599, William Shakespeare, , III. ii. 80:I will to my honest knight
Falstaff, and drink canary with him. - A lively dance, possibly of Spanish origin (also called canaries).
- 1598, William Shakespeare, , II. i. 74:and make you dance canary
With sprightly fire and motion; - Any test subject, especially an inadvertent or unwilling one. (From the mining practice of using canaries to detect dangerous gases.)
- (informal) A female singer, soprano, a coloratura singer.
- (slang) An informer or snitch; a squealer.
- (slang) A (usually yellow) capsule of the short-acting barbiturate pentobarbital/pentobarbitone (Nembutal).
- (Australia, informal) A yellow sticker of unroadworthiness.
- 1993, September 12, Jacco Zwetsloot, Warning About Speed Traps, The tendency in these types of situations (as far as I can see) is that because I don't think the act itself is illegal, the police will go through your vehicle systematically loking for anything wrong with it, to slap a canary on it (that's slang for an unroadworthy sticker) or present you with some other fine.
- 1999, January 16, Garry Lawson, Noisy Bikes (Update), Yes, if the exhaust is to noisey they can slap a yellow canary on it, but then who cares you got rid of it.
- 2003, February 14, Noddy, Spare tyres, You don't have to carry a spare wheel for a car to be roadworthy, and if you *do* carry one, it doesn't have to be in a roadworthy condition *unless* you fit it to the car and drive on it.
If it's not and you get pinched, expect a canary...
Hyponyms
- , ,
Derived terms
Adjective
canary
- Of a light yellow colour.
Verb
- (intransitive) to dance nimbly (as in the canary dance)
- 1590, William Shakespeare, , III. i. 11:but to jig off a tune at
the tongue's end, canary to it with your feet,