Chinook

noun

Chi·​nook shə-ˈnu̇k  -ˈnük 

chə-

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

or less commonly chinook plural chinook also chinooks : chinook salmon

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

Examples of Chinook in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Although Upper Klamath Lake was known for unusually huge rainbow trout, some two feet long, that attracted anglers in droves, little thought was given to the Chinook salmon that had once thrived in the Klamath River but were no longer seen so far upstream. —Dan Walters, The Mercury News, 5 Nov. 2024

Pumping to supply farms and cities has contributed to the ecological degradation of the Delta, where threatened and endangered fish species include steelhead trout, two types of Chinook salmon, longfin smelt, Delta smelt and green sturgeon. —Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 26 Oct. 2024

For the first time in 112 years, Chinook salmon are swimming freely in the Klamath Basin in Oregon. —Alexa Robles-Gil, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 Oct. 2024

On that note, here’s what’s happening around the West: TOP STORIES From my colleague, Ian James, comes this happy and amazing story of what can happen when conservation strategies succeed: Klamath River Chinook salmon have been spotted in Oregon for the first time in more than a century. —Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Lower Chehalis (Salishan language of western Washington) c̓inúk, name of a Chinook village

First Known Use

1795, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing Chinook

• Chinook jargon
• Chinook salmon

Kids Definition

Chinook

noun

Chi·​nook shə-ˈnu̇k  chə- 

plural Chinook or Chinooks

: a member of an Indigenous people of Oregon

also : their language