Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Of, relating to, or characteristic of the canids.
  • adjective Of, relating to, or being one of the pointed conical teeth located between the incisors and the first bicuspids.
  • noun An animal of the family Canidae, especially a dog.
  • noun One of the pointed, conical teeth located between the incisors and the first bicuspids.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Of or pertaining to a dog; having the character or qualities of dogs; characteristic of dogs; like or likened to a dog.
  • Specifically, of or pertaining to the Canidæ.
  • Affecting or derived from dogs: as, canine rabies; canine virus.
  • Pertaining to a canine or dog-tooth.
  • The conical processes on the inside of the mandible of an insect, toward its apex.
  • noun A dog.
  • noun Technically, in zoology, one of the Canidæ or Canina; a dog, wolf, fox, fennec, or jackal; a cynoid, thoöid, or alopecoid.
  • noun One of the four sharp-pointed tearing-teeth of most mammals, situated one on each side of each jaw, opposite one another, between the incisors or cutting-teeth and the molars or grinders.
  • noun One of the sharp teeth which project beyond the others in the jaw of a fish.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Anat.) A canine tooth.
  • adjective Of or pertaining to the family Canidæ, or dogs and wolves; having the nature or qualities of a dog; like that or those of a dog.
  • adjective (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the pointed tooth on each side the incisors.
  • adjective a morbidly voracious appetite; bulimia.
  • adjective the letter r. See R.
  • adjective hydrophobia.
  • adjective a tooth situated between the incisor and bicuspid teeth, so called because well developed in dogs; usually, the third tooth from the front on each side of each jaw; an eyetooth, or the corresponding tooth in the lower jaw.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Of, or pertaining to, a dog or dogs.
  • adjective Dog-like.
  • adjective anatomy Of or pertaining to mammalian teeth which are cuspids or fangs.
  • noun A dog or wolf, as distinct from a fox, which is a vulpine.
  • noun In heterodont mammals, the pointy tooth between the incisors and the premolars; a cuspid.
  • noun poker slang A king and a nine as a starting hand in Texas hold 'em due to phonetic similarity

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun any of various fissiped mammals with nonretractile claws and typically long muzzles
  • adjective of or relating to or characteristic of members of the family Canidae
  • noun one of the four pointed conical teeth (two in each jaw) located between the incisors and the premolars
  • adjective of or relating to a pointed conical tooth

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin canīnus, from canis, dog; see kwon- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin caninus ("of the dog, dog-like")

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Examples

  • I assume you know what the term canine is and regards to teeth what they are for? and dont come back with, "for cutting lettuce"

    Army Rumour Service 2010

  • I assume you know what the term canine is and regards to teeth what they are for? and dont come back with, "for cutting lettuce"

    Army Rumour Service 2010

  • I assume you know what the term canine is and regards to teath what they are for? and dont come back with, "for cutting lettuce"

    Army Rumour Service 2010

  • "It is the behavior of people that causes dog bites, dog maulings and what I call canine homicides."

    RutlandHerald.com 2009

  • • Several weaknesses were found in canine explosives detection testing procedures carried out by AGNA's subcontractor, including failure to test for all scents required by the contract, use of expired and potentially contaminated materials, and explosives storage problems that may lead to cross-contamination.

    David Isenberg: At Least They're Not Doing Vodka Butt Shots Anymore David Isenberg 2010

  • Paul has a little scrap with Jacob, both in canine form, when Bella (Kristen Stewart) gives the former a good, hard smack for turning the latter away from her.

    ‘New Moon’ Star Alex Meraz Is REALLY Into Wolves In Today’s Daily TwitPic » MTV Movies Blog 2009

  • No, don't take that one; it's been rehashed so often online that even Gypsy would turn up her nose at it, and she gobbles everything within canine reach, and then some.

    Struggling with honesty L. Lee Lowe 2008

  • Perhaps the most irritating flea on the back of the aforesaid canine is Helen Boaden ..

    Archive 2008-01-01 Newmania 2008

  • Perhaps the most irritating flea on the back of the aforesaid canine is Helen Boaden ..

    Archive 2008-01-06 Newmania 2008

  • No, don't take that one; it's been rehashed so often online that even Gypsy would turn up her nose at it, and she gobbles everything within canine reach, and then some.

    Archive 2008-08-01 L. Lee Lowe 2008

Comments

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  • Should it be ca-ate(eight)? canine seems much more appropriate for cats

    June 22, 2007

  • My body was reacting to the sight of home. Happy sparks were shooting off inside me. It was a canine feeling, full of eager love, and dumb to tragedy.

    —Jeffrey Eugenides, 2002, Middlesex, p. 519

    August 17, 2008