Search the dictionary Advanced Search

How to use the Ojibwe People's Dictionary

Lake Superior
place
Lake Superior
gichigami ni
  1. a sea, a large lake
  2. Lake Superior

lake trout
n
lake trout
namegos na a lake trout

[
lake trout
; 
Salvelinus namaycush
]

namegosikaa vii there are (many) lake trout

have lake trout
onamegosi vai s/he has a lake trout or lake trout

lamb
[meat]
n
lamb (meat)
maanishtaanishi-wiiyaas ni lamb [meat]

lamb
[animal]
n
lamb
maanishtaanishens na a lamb

lame
adj
lame leg
maakigaade vai s/he has a lame leg

lame
maakizi vai s/he is lame, has an old injury

lamp
n
electric lamp
waasamoo-waazakonenjigan ni an electric lamp

lamp
waazakonenjigan ni a lamp, a light

lance
n
lance
zhimaagan ni a spear, a lance

ozhimaagani vai s/he has a lance, spear

carry lance
gigizhimaagane vai s/he carries a lance, spear

land
n
land
aki ni
  1. earth, land, ground
  2. a country, a territory
  3. moss

allot land
mamakii' vta allot h/ land

allotment of land
mamakii'idim vai there is an allotment of land

clear land
mazhii'ige vai s/he clears land, brushes

have land
odakiimi vai s/he has land

survey land
diba'akii vai s/he surveys land

land
vi
land
agwaa'o vai s/he lands, comes ashore in a boat

land from flight
boonii vai s/he alights, lands (from flight)

Paired with: booniimagad vii

booniimagad vii it lands (from flight)

Paired with: boonii vai

land coming off ice
mizhagaako vai s/he lands coming off the ice

mizhagaakoba'iwe vai s/he lands running off the ice in flight from someone

language
n
language
inwewin ni a way of speaking, a language, a dialect

Cree language
omashkiigoomowin ni Cree language

omashkiigoomo vai s/he speaks Cree

Dakota language
bwaanimowin ni the Dakota language

bwaanimo vai s/he speaks Dakota

English language
zhaaganaashiimowin ni the English language

zhaaganaashiimo vai s/he speaks English

French language
wemitigoozhiimowin ni the French language

Indian language
anishinaabemowin ni an Indian language, the Ojibwe language

anishinaabemo vai s/he speaks Ojibwe, speaks an Indian language

anishinaabemonodaw vta [N] speak Ojibwe to h/; speak an Indian language to h/

See also: anishinaabemotaw vta [ML]

Ojibwe language
anishinaabemowin ni an Indian language, the Ojibwe language

anishinaabemo vai s/he speaks Ojibwe, speaks an Indian language

anishinaabemotaw vta [ML] speak Ojibwe to h/; speak an Indian language to h/

anishinaabemonodaw vta [N] speak Ojibwe to h/; speak an Indian language to h/

See also: anishinaabemotaw vta [ML]

ojibwemowin ni the Ojibwe language

ojibwemo vai s/he speaks Ojibwe

ojibwemotaw vta speak Ojibwe to h/

ojibwemonodaw vta [RL] speak Ojibwe to h/

Scandinavian language
agongosimowin ni a Scandinavian language: Norwegian, Swedish

agongosimo vai s/he speaks a Scandinavian language

The Ojibwe People's Dictionary is developed and maintained by:
Nora Livesay, Editor
John D. Nichols, Founder and Linguistic Editor

with support and collaboration from the University of Minnesota's Department of American Indian Studies and University Libraries.

Additional Resources

Many of the words in the Ojibwe People's Dictionary have related resources. Click through to the full dictionary entry to hear audio recordings, see images, read documents and watch videos. Here's a key to resource icons.

  • Audio recordings
  • Images
  • Video
  • Documents

Speakers & Regions Key

Individual speakers and speakers from different regions use different words when speaking. Each audio recording is marked with the initials of the Ojibwe speaker. Click on a speaker's initials to go to the speaker's bio page. If an Ojibwe word is particular to a certain region, it will be marked with a region code. Click on the region code to go to the Regions page.