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How to use the Ojibwe People's Dictionary

wash
vi
wash
giziibiigii vai s/he washes up

giziibiigazhe vai s/he washes up, takes a bath, bathes

wash
vt
wash
giziibiiga' vta wash h/ (using something)

Paired with: giziibiiga'an vti

giziibiiga'an vti wash it (using something)

Paired with: giziibiiga' vta

giziibiiga'amaw vta wash (it) for h/, launder for h/

giziibiiga'ige vai s/he washes things, washes clothes, does laundry

giziibiiga'igaade vii it is washed (by someone), "they" wash it

giziibiiga'igaazo vai s/he is washed (by someone), "they" wash h/

giziibiigin vta wash h/ (by hand)

Paired with: giziibiiginan vti

giziibiiginan vti wash it (by hand)

Paired with: giziibiigin vta

giziibiiginigaade vii it is washed (by someone), "they" wash it

giziibiiginigaazo vai s/he is washed (by someone), "they" wash h/

wash car
giziibiigidaabaane vai s/he washes a car or vehicle

giziibiigidaabaanetamaw vta wash a car or vehicle for h/

wash clean
biinaabaawe vai s/he or it (animate) is washed off clean

biinaabaawe vii it is washed off clean

Paired with: biinaabaawe vai

biinaabaawadoon vti2 wash it clean

Paired with: biinaabaawazh vta

biinaabaawazh vta wash h/ clean

wash clothes
giziibiiga'ige vai s/he washes things, washes clothes, does laundry

wash dishes
giziibiiginaagane vai s/he washes dishes

giziininaagane vai [BL] s/he washs dishes

wash face
giziibiigiingwe vai s/he washes h/ (own) face

giziingwe vai s/he washes h/ face

wash floor
giziibiigisaginige vai s/he washes the floor

See also: giziisaginige vai [BL]

giziisaginan vti wash it (a floor); wipe it (a floor)

giziisaginige vai [BL] s/he wipes the floor; [BL] s/he washes the floor

See also: giziibiigisaginige vai

giziisaginamaw vta wash the floor for h/; wipe the floor for h/

wash hair
giziibiigindibe vai s/he washes h/ (own) hair

giziibiigindiben vta wash h/ hair

giziibiigitigwaanen vta [BL] wash h/ hair

wash hand
giziibiigininjii vai s/he washes h/ (own) hands

giziibiigininjiin vta wash h/ hands

giziininjii vai s/he wipes h/ (own) hands; s/he washes (own) h/ hands

giziininjiin vta wash h/ hand or hands; wipe h/ hand or hands

wash kettle
giziibiiginakokwe vai s/he washes a kettle or a pail

wash pail
giziibiiginakokwe vai s/he washes a kettle or a pail

wash basin
n
wash basin
giziibiigiingwewinaagan ni a wash basin

giziininjaagan ni a sink; a wash basin

giziibiiwinaagan ni a washbasin

wash tub
n
wash tub
giziibiiga'igani-biiwaabik ni a washtub, a washing machine

giziibiiga'igani-makak ni a wash tub

giziibiiga'ige-makak ni a washtub, a washing machine

giziibiiga'igewinaagan ni [BL] a washtub, a washing machine

giziibiiga'igani-makakosag ni a wash tub

washboard
n
washboard
mamigwaakosijigan ni [BL] a washboard

See also: mimigwaakosijigan ni

mimigwaakosijigan ni a washboard

See also: mamigwaakosijigan ni [BL]

scrub on washboard
mimigwaakosijige vai s/he scrubs something on a washboard

mimigwaakosidoon vti2 scrub it on a washboard, rub it against a board

mamigwaakosijige vai [BL] s/he scrubs on a washboard

See also: mimigwaakosijige vai

washcloth
n
washcloth
giziingwe'onens na [N] a washcloth

See also: giziingwe'onens ni [S]

washing machine
n
washing machine
giziibiiga'ige-makak ni a washtub, a washing machine

Washington
place
Washington
Waashtanong name place Washington

washroom
n
washroom
giziibiigiiwigamig ni a washroom, a shower room

wasp
n
wasp
aamoo na a bee, a wasp

aamookaa vii there are (many) bees, wasps

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.

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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.