canine

Syllables: ca·nine/ˈkeɪnaɪn/US/ˈkeɪˌnaɪn/

canine adjective: of, or pertaining to, a dog or dogs.

Adjective

canine (not comparable)

Of, or pertaining to, a dog or dogs.
- Two canine animals in a time of dearth, may be truly said to struggle with each other which shall get food and live.1859, Charles Darwin, On the Origin of Species
- We carried the dog round to the yard, and I examined his head. […] I accepted the care of the canine patient.1913, Sax Rohmer, chapter 8, in The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu
Synonyms:

dogly, houndly
Dog-like.
- In many respects she made me an admirable wife. Her affection for me was canine—positively.1891, Arthur Quiller-Couch, “The Affair of Bleakirk-on-Sands,”, in Noughts & Crosses
- I look for reflections, in your face
  Canine devotion, time can't erase
  Out on the corner, locked in your room
  I never believe them and I never assume2000, Josh Homme, Nick Oliveri, “The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret”, in Rated R, performed by Queens of the Stone Age
Synonyms:

dogly, doglike, houndly
Of or pertaining to mammalian teeth which are cuspids or fangs.
- Then his upper lip may be seen to be raised, especially at the corners, so that his huge canine teeth are exhibited.1872, Charles Darwin, chapter 10, in Expression of Emotion in Man and Animals
(obsolete) Of an appetite: depraved or inordinate; used to describe eating disorders.

Noun

canine (plural canines)

Any member of Caninae, the only living subfamily of Canidae.
- Whatever the case, the pair’s adventure certainly became famous in 2016, when a large dating program of fossils and artefacts from Chauvet Cave, which included the smear of charcoal discarded by the child, confirmed that the tracks constitute the oldest unequivocal evidence of a relationship...2018, Tim Flannery, Europe: A Natural History, page 187
- The dire wolf, Aenocyon dirus, which was the inspiration for the fearsome canine featured in the HBO TV series “Game of Thrones,” was a top predator that once roamed North America. (HBO shares parent company Warner Bros. Discovery with CNN.)2025 April 7, Katie Hunt, “Scientists say they have resurrected the dire wolf”, in CNN, archived from the original on 27 Apr 2025
(formal) Any of certain extant canids regarded as similar to the dog or wolf (including coyotes, jackals, etc.) but distinguished from the vulpines, which are regarded as fox-like.
- The canine ran across the room to the open window, put his front paws on the sill and pointed his nose at the sidewalk below.2010, M. S. Mititch, The Spychip Conspiracy, page 189
Synonyms:

dog
Synonym of cuspid, the pointed tooth between the incisors and premolars in heterodont mammals.
- He tried to push Kissu into his cage, but the cougar charged back out and sank his canines into Wilson's rump.2006, Amy Sutherland, Kicked, Bitten, and Scratched: Life and Lessons at the World's Premier School for Animal Trainers
Synonyms:

cuspid
(slang) A king and a nine as a starting hand in Texas hold 'em due to phonetic similarity.
- You have been dealt King-9 unsuited ("canine") in your pocket.2005, Dennis Purdy, The Illustrated Guide to Texas Hold'em, page 270

canine meaning in Hindi, Urdu, Bengali and Malayalam

canine in Hindi

pertaining to dogs: श्वानीय śvānīya

canine in Urdu

کتے جیسا

canine in Bengali

কুকুরসংক্রান্ত

canine in Malayalam

ശ്വാവിനെ സംബന്ധിച്ച, നായവർഗ്ഗത്തിൽപ്പെട്ട, പട്ടിയുടെ സ്വഭാവമുള്ള

More languagesFewer languages

canine in Kannada: ನಾಯಿಯ, ನಾಯಿಗೆ ಸಂಬಂಧಿಸಿದ, ನಾಯಿಸ್ವಭಾವದ
canine in Punjabi: ਕੁੱਤਾ ਵਰਗਾ kuttā vargā
canine in Arabic: كَلْبِيّ kalbiyy
canine in Malay: kanin, anjing

Examples of canine in a sentence

Appleby's yard was dug up, but the only bones discovered was canine.1979 February 10, Allen Young, “Living In The Country”, in Gay Community News, volume 6, number 28, page 8:
A lost dog sniffed around the flower beds wishing it had some canine company[…]2005, Gareth Roberts, Only Human, page 17:

All 40 example sentences with canine

Synonyms of canine

All synonyms of canine

Forms of canine

plural	canines

Plural of canine: canines

Origin of canine

From Latin canīnus (“of dogs, doglike, dogtooth”), from canis (“dog”). Compare French canin.

Phrases with canine

Words that rhyme with canine

Questions about canine

What does canine mean?: Canine means of, or pertaining to, a dog or dogs.
What is canine in Hindi?: Canine in Hindi is श्वानीय (śvānīya). See Canine meaning in Hindi.
How do you use canine in a sentence?: Appleby's yard was dug up, but the only bones discovered was canine.
What part of speech is canine?: Canine can be an adjective or a noun.
How do you pronounce canine?: Canine is pronounced /ˈkeɪnaɪn/ (UK).

Words near canine in the dictionary

Adapted from Wiktionary: canine (page history and authors); canine (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); canine (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors); canine (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); canine (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-au-canine.ogg, LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-canine.wav.

Cite this entry: “canine.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/canine. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.