sardine
1 Americannoun
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sardine,
plural
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sardines
plural
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the pilchard, Sardina pilchardus, often preserved in oil and used for food.
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any of various similar, closely related fishes of the herring family Clupeidae.
noun
noun
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any of various small marine food fishes of the herring family, esp a young pilchard See also sild
-
very closely crowded together
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of sardine1
1400–50; late Middle English sardeine < Middle French sardine < Latin sardīna, derivative of sarda sardine, noun use of feminine of Sardus Sardinian
Origin of sardine2
1300–50; Middle English (< Late Latin sardīnus ) < Greek sárdinos sardius
Explanation
A sardine is a very small, oily fish. You might like to eat sardines on toast for lunch. If you do, we suggest an after-lunch mint may be in order. Sardines are most often bought canned, lined up in rows in little tins. The word sardine is actually a general term — it refers to a type of fish, most often a small herring, while a slightly larger one is sometimes called a pilchard. The phrase "packed like sardines," describing people crowded together in a tight spot like an elevator or a subway car, comes from the way sardines look in cans. The word itself comes from the Mediterranean island Sardinia.
Vocabulary lists containing sardine
Inside Out & Back Again
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Amazing Animals, A-Z
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Amazing Animals, List 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Heat also fuels toxic algae blooms containing domoic acid, which contaminate the anchovy and sardine populations.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
If you want to wear rainbow chard, a sardine tin, or a TV dinner in your hair, Lennick has a clip for that, though the company's bestseller is a strawberry.
From BBC ● Apr. 22, 2026
“Better than being an old sardine tin with a few fins left in it.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 20, 2026
Jackie Smook, a puppet maker and creator of the show “Dilly’s World,” threads a needle while working on a sardine puppet at her home workshop.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2025
Christopher gave the griffin a sardine; the creature swallowed it whole, trying to take his fingers with it.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
The switch came about after Lambourn visited the park and heard a keeper mention that the penguins loved sardines.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
To the Chumash, “a school of sardines would have looked like an enormous, dark shadow passing beneath the water.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
My favorites are Mina’s Moroccan style sardines in tomato sauce and sardines in extra virgin olive oil with lemon.
From Salon ● Jun. 6, 2026
Researchers believe this method could be applied to other archived seafood, such as canned sardines, offering a new way to explore historical ecosystems.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 1, 2026
On the other side: a large down to sleep on the floor like canned sardines, one’s feet next to another’s head.
From "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
