sardine
1 Americannoun
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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
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.
“Better than being an old sardine tin with a few fins left in it.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 20, 2026
In a mere seven hours, from concept to construction, the character takes form — a blue sardine donning sunglasses, large lips and vibrant orange hair, a signature look of her work.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 5, 2025
Built for a housing association, it was known to taxi drivers as the sardine can, and both architects and their families took flats there.
From BBC • Sep. 29, 2025
The team attributed the 1980s weight decline to an increase in Japanese sardine, which likely led to greater competition for food within and between fish species.
From Science Daily • Feb. 28, 2024
The men from the sardine fleet, loaded with dough, were in and out all afternoon.
From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck
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.
