kennel

[ken-l]

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noun

a house or shelter for a dog or a cat.

Often kennels. an establishment where dogs or cats are bred, raised, trained, or boarded.

the hole or lair of an animal, especially a fox.

a wretched abode likened to a doghouse.

a pack of dogs.

verb (used with object), ken·neled, ken·nel·ing or (especially British) ken·nelled, ken·nel·ling.

to put into or keep in a kennel: to kennel a dog for a week.

verb (used without object), ken·neled, ken·nel·ing or (especially British) ken·nelled, ken·nel·ling.

to take shelter or lodge in a kennel.

Origin of kennel

1300–50; Middle English kenel < Anglo-French *kenil (French chenil) < Vulgar Latin *canīle (Latin can(is) dog + -īle suffix of place)

kennel

[ken-l]

noun

an open drain or sewer; gutter.

Origin of kennel

1575–85; variant of cannel, Middle English canel channel¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for kennel

enclosure, gutter, lair, shelter, drain, pound, den, flock, doghouse

Examples from the Web for kennel

Contemporary Examples of kennel

The American Kennel Club maintains it is not a Berman customer.
The Sleazy War on the Humane Society
Center for Public Integrity
August 18, 2014
Brus, 7½, did not react well to other animals and had behavioral problems which meant he could not be sent to a kennel.
How William's Guard Dogs Were Killed Days After He Left His RAF Job
Tom Sykes
September 18, 2013
The stars are in a roped-off area about the size of a dog run at a kennel.
New Moon Rises Over Hollywood
Kim Masters
November 17, 2009

Historical Examples of kennel

Oscar was a colley (sheep dog) which slept in a kennel in the cornyard.
Ranald Bannerman's Boyhood
George MacDonald
When they've done with you at Government House, they may find a kennel for you there until morning.
Captain Blood
Rafael Sabatini
He placed me in this kennel, vanished, and left me to my fate.
The Strollers
Frederic S. Isham
His word was law in the stables, the kennel, the plantations, and the boat-quay.
Tony Butler
Charles James Lever
He was huddled in the back of his kennel, with his nose jammed down into the corner.
The House in the Water
Charles G. D. Roberts

British Dictionary definitions for kennel

kennel

noun

a hutlike shelter for a dogUS name: doghouse

(usually plural) an establishment where dogs are bred, trained, boarded, etc

the lair of a fox or other animal

a ramshackle house; hovel

a pack of hounds

verb -nels, -nelling or -nelled or US -nels, -neling or -neled

to put or go into a kennel; keep or stay in a kennel

Word Origin for kennel

C14: from Old French chenil, from Vulgar Latin canīle (unattested), from Latin canis dog

kennel

noun

archaic an open sewer or street gutter

Word Origin for kennel

C16: variant of cannel channel 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for kennel

c.1300, from Anglo-French *kenil, Old French chenil, from Vulgar Latin *canile, from Latin canem (nominative canis) "dog" (see canine (n.)), "with suffix as in ovile sheepfold" [OED]. As a verb, 1550s, from the noun.