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Meaning of canaries in a coal mine | Babel Free

Noun CEFR C2

Definitions

Noun. [C2]

Examples

“The weakest members of society become social barometers or canaries in a coal mine.”
“One of the few animals to live part of its life in water and part on land, frogs are seen by some as canaries in a coal mine — which is why the chytrid fungus has environmentalists worried.”
“Perhaps public assistance has little to do with obesity among the poor; instead, the poor may simply be canaries in a coal mine, their health suffering from environmental changes before others feel the impact.”

CEFR level

C2
Mastery
This word is part of the CEFR C2 vocabulary — mastery level.

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