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How to use the Ojibwe People's Dictionary

dakoniwewikwe na a police officer (female)

dakoniwewinini na a policeman; a sheriff

dakoniwewininiikwe na a policewoman

dakoshkinzhii vai s/he has a short snout or muzzle

dakozh vta cut h/ short

Paired with: dakozhan vti

dakozhan vti cut it short

Paired with: dakozh vta ; dakozhwi vta [BL]

dakozigwaa vii it (slab-like) is short

dakozhwi vta [BL] cut h/ short

► dakozh vta

dakoogamaa vii it is a short lake

dakoonagad vii it (a canoe or boat) is short

Paired with: dakoonagizi vai

dakoonagizi vai it (animate; vehicle) is short

Paired with: dakoonagad vii

dakoosagad vii it (useful wood) is short

dakootigweyaa vii it is a short river

dakoozi vai s/he is short

Paired with: dakwaa vii

dakwam vta bite h/ or it (animate); hold it (animate) in the mouth

Paired with: dakwandan vti

(detransitive) dakwange vai s/he bites people
dakwamon vii it (road or trail) is short

dakwanashkidii vai s/he (a bird) has a short tail

dakwandan vti bite it; hold it in the mouth

Paired with: dakwam vta

(derived noun) dakwanjigan ni vicegrips; (a pair of) pliers (detransitive) dakwanjige vai s/he bites things, has a mouthful
gaa-dakwanjigemagak ni-v [BL] a pair of pliers
dakwange vai s/he bites people

dakwanjigan ni (a pair of) pliers; vicegrips

dakwanjiganaabik ni (a pair of) pliers

dakwanjiganaabikoons ni (a pair of) pliers

dakwanjige vai s/he bites things, has a mouthful

dakwashkad vii it (plant, grass) has a short stalk, is short

dakwashkidii vai it (animate; a bird) has a short tail

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.