1540–50; < Scots Gaelic caoil (genitive of caol ) strait, sound (noun use of caol narrow)
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"O Colum of Iona-Isle, And ye who dwell in God's quiet place, Before I crossed your narrow kyle I looked in Heaven upon Christ's face."
From Christmas in Legend and Story A Book for Boys and Girls by Smith, Elva S.
“It’s trying to catch up with a bullet train,” said Kyle Chan, a fellow at the Brookings Institution.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
DC Studios will also grace Hall H to preview its HBO series "Lanterns," starring Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre as small-town Nebraska detectives, which debuts August 16.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
A host of cabinet ministers in the Starmer government confirmed they were leaving their jobs, including Peter Kyle, Rachel Reeves and David Lammy.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
Kyle Clark, an anchorman on Denver’s 9News, asked the candidate in a persistent and revealing sit-down interview.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2026
The last time a game was on the line and Kyle listened to someone who “thought” they knew the answer, he’d lost.
From "Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics" by Chris Grabenstein
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.
