n.
- Any of various small or half-grown edible herrings or related fishes of the family Clupeidae, frequently canned in oil or water, especially the pilchard of European waters.
- Any of numerous small, silvery, edible freshwater or marine fishes unrelated to the sardine.
To pack tightly; cram: "The bars are sardined with hungry hopefuls" (Gael Greene).
[Middle English sardin, from Old French sardine, from Latin sardīna, from sarda, a kind of fish, ultimately from Greek Sardō, Sardinia.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
