| 释义 |
canary in a coalmine
idiom(alsocanary in the coalmine, canary in the mine)
something that gives an early warning of danger or failure, in the way that, in the past, a canary taken into a mine(= an underground place for digging coal or minerals) would die if the air was not safe to breathe, warning the people working there:
The Arctic has been called the canary in a coalmine when it comes to global warming.
He likens butterflies to the canary in the coalmine, being the first to suffer when the environment is under stress.
The canary in the mine is the airport. As long as its usage is down, hotel usage and the local economy will be down.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Threats & warnings
advance warning
alarm
alarm bell
bell-ringing
beware the ides of Marchidiom
bomb scare
bow
brushback pitch
burglar alarm
cautionary
don't you dareidiom
early warning system
hear warning bellsidiom
one swallow doesn't make a summeridiom
protection racket
red alert
red flag
scare quotes
screamer
yellow card
|