What does "canard" mean?
A false or misleading report or story, especially if deliberately so.
Canard
/kəˈnɑɹd/ noun
noun ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A false or misleading report or story, especially if deliberately so.
- Grammar: canard is listed as noun.
- Nearest alternatives: airplane, artifice, bouncer, broiler.
- Useful contrasts: fact, reality, truth.
- Usage evidence: It’s a cinch, now that Spurling has cleared away a century’s worth of misapprehensions and canards.
How to use "canard"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "canard" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "canard" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "canard" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "canard" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "canard" is acting as noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "airplane" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "canard", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A false or misleading report or story, especially if deliberately so.
"It’s a cinch, now that Spurling has cleared away a century’s worth of misapprehensions and canards."
- 2 a deliberately misleading fabrication wordnet
- 3 A type of aircraft in which the primary horizontal control and stabilization surfaces are in front of the main wing.
- 4 A horizontal control and stabilization surface located in front of the main wing of an aircraft. broadly
- 5 Any small winglike structure on a vehicle, usually used for stabilization. broadly
Example
"It’s a cinch, now that Spurling has cleared away a century’s worth of misapprehensions and canards."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "canard"?
Common synonyms include: airplane, artifice, bouncer, broiler, bruit, buzz.
How do you use "canard" in a sentence?
It’s a cinch, now that Spurling has cleared away a century’s worth of misapprehensions and canards.
How do you pronounce "canard"?
Pronounced /kəˈnɑɹd/.
Etymology
Borrowed from French canard (“duck, hoax”). etymology note The primary English meaning of canard comes from the Medieval French expression “vendre un canard à moitié”, which literally means “to sell half a duck” or “to half-sell a duck”. This was perhaps the punch line to a joke. Eventually the punch line came to stand for the joke and then finally the word alone stood for the whole concept. The story may perhaps have gone like this: A duck seller is successful and content as the only duck seller on a street, selling his ducks for eight francs each. A new duck seller moves in across the street who steals all the business by offering his ducks for seven francs each. Then a price war ensues, back and forth, until the new duck seller is down to three francs for a duck. The original duck seller is beside himself with worry and frustration, but finally he puts up a big sign that says, “Two francs” and then in small print at the bottom “for half a duck.” In this way, to half-sell ducks may have come to mean tricking people with something that is literally true but misleading. It has this same metaphorical meaning in French. Now in English, it simply means anything that is deliberately misleading, a hoax.