plural Chinook or Chinooks
1
: a member of an Indigenous people of the north shore of the Columbia River at its mouth
2
: a Chinookan language of the Chinook and other nearby peoples
3
or less commonly chinook
a
: a warm moist southwest wind of the coast from Oregon northward
b
: a warm dry wind that descends the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains
4
5
: any of a rare breed of large, muscular dogs that were developed in New Hampshire in the early 1900s as sled and working dogs and have a yellow, reddish-yellow, or yellowish-brown coat and calm temperament
Among the dogs he [Arthur Treadwell Walden] used for breeding the Chinook were descendants of Admiral Peary's Greenland expedition huskies, along with mastiff-types.—
John Nolan
John NolanExamples of Chinook in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The area surrounding the falls also played an important part in the history of various Native tribes, including the Chinook, Wasco, and Klickitat.
—Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 27 Apr. 2025
Weeklong extreme fly-fishing itineraries are offered mid-October through April, with endless opportunities to hook brown, brook, and rainbow trout, as well as steelhead and Chinook salmon toward season’s end.
—Jen Murphy, Robb Report, 19 Apr. 2025
Fishery regulators have voted to ban commercial fishing for Chinook salmon along the California coast for an unprecedented third consecutive year because of low population numbers.
—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2025
Some experts fear the conditions in California have been so poor for so long that Chinook may never rebound to fishable levels.
—Alastair Bland | Calmatters, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for Chinook
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 27 Apr. 2025
Weeklong extreme fly-fishing itineraries are offered mid-October through April, with endless opportunities to hook brown, brook, and rainbow trout, as well as steelhead and Chinook salmon toward season’s end.
—Jen Murphy, Robb Report, 19 Apr. 2025
Fishery regulators have voted to ban commercial fishing for Chinook salmon along the California coast for an unprecedented third consecutive year because of low population numbers.
—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2025
Some experts fear the conditions in California have been so poor for so long that Chinook may never rebound to fishable levels.
—Alastair Bland | Calmatters, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for Chinook
Cite this Entry
“Chinook.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Chinook. Accessed 3 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share