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How to use the Ojibwe People's Dictionary

nearly
adv
nearly
gegaa adv deg nearly, almost

ingoji adv deg somewhere, anywhere; approximately; nearly, almost

See also: ningoji adv loc

necessary
adj
necessary
booch adv man it is certain; it is necessary; no matter what

neck
n
back of neck
nikwegan nid my neck

gikwegan nid your neck

okwegan nid h/ neck

clean neck
biinaakogwe vai s/he has a clean neck; h/ neck is clean

long neck
ginwaabiigigwe vai s/he has a long thin neck

See also: genwaabiigigwed na-v

neck itches
gizhiibigwayawe vai h/ neck itches

scar on neck
ojiishigwayawe vai s/he has a scar on h/ neck

stiff neck
jiibajigwayawe vai s/he has a stiff neck

wear around neck
naabikan vti wear it around the neck

Paired with: naabikaw vta

naabikaw vta wear it (animate) around the neck

Paired with: naabikan vti

wring neck
bookogwebizh vta wring h/ neck

necklace
n
necklace
naabikaagan ni [BL] something worn around the neck: a necklace, a necktie, a neck scarf

naabikawaagan na something worn around the neck: a necklace, a necktie, a neck scarf ; a necktie

necktie
n
necktie
naabikawaagan na something worn around the neck: a necklace, a necktie, a neck scarf ; a necktie

need
vi
need
andawendam vai2 [N] s/he needs, wants something, wishes for something

See also: nandawendam vai2 [S]

andawendan vti [C] [N] need, want it

Paired with: andawenim vta [N] See also: nandawendan vti [S]

andawenim vta [N] hunt it (animate); need, want h/ or it (animate)

Paired with: andawendan vti [C] [N] See also: nandawenim vta [S] [S]

nandawendam vai2 [S] s/he needs, wants something, wishes for something

See also: andawendam vai2 [N]

nandawendan vti [S] need, want it

Paired with: nandawenim vta [S] [S] See also: andawendan vti [C] [N]

nandawenim vta [S] [S] hunt it (animate); need, want h/ or it (animate)

Paired with: nandawendan vti [S] See also: andawenim vta [N]

need to
noonde- pv lex before the usual time; need to

need
n
in need
manezin vai + o s/he is in need of, is short of (it)

needle
n
needle
zhaabonigan ni a needle

beading needle
naabidoo'igan ni a beading needle

glovers needle
ashashawe-zhaabonigan ni a leather needle; a glovers needle

See also: ashishawe-zhaabonigan ni

ashishawe-zhaabonigan ni a leather needle; a glovers needle

See also: ashashawe-zhaabonigan ni

leather needle
ashishawe-zhaabonigan ni a leather needle; a glovers needle

See also: ashashawe-zhaabonigan ni

ashashawe-zhaabonigan ni a leather needle; a glovers needle

See also: ashishawe-zhaabonigan ni

sewing machine needle
gashkigwaasonaabiko-zhaabonigan ni [BL] a sewing machine needle

neighbor
n
neighbor
wiijigamigishkaw vta be a neighbor to h/

nephew
n
parallel nephew
indoozhim nad
  1. my nephew (parallel nephew: a male's brother's son or a female's sister's son)
  2. my stepson

See also: nindoozhim nad

nindoozhim nad
  1. my nephew (parallel nephew: a male's brother's son or a female's sister's son)
  2. my stepson

See also: indoozhim nad

gidoozhim nad
  1. your nephew (parallel nephew: a male's brother's son or a female's sister's son)
  2. your stepson

odoozhiman nad
  1. h/ nephew (parallel nephew: male's brother's son or female's sister's son)
  2. h/ stepson

cross-nephew
niningwanis nad my nephew (cross-nephew: a male's sister's son or a female's brother's son)

giningwanis nad your nephew (cross-nephew: a male's sister's son or a female's brother's son)

oningwanisan nad h/ nephew (cross-nephew: male's sister's son or female's brother's son)

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.

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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.

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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.