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How to use the Ojibwe People's Dictionary

gibwanaabaawe vai s/he drowns

gibwanaamode vii it is full of smoke

Paired with: gibwanaamozo vai

gibwanaamoz vta smoke h/ out

gibwanaamozo vai s/he suffocates from smoke

Paired with: gibwanaamode vii

gibwashkosiwagaa vii it is blocked with grass, is overgrown with grass

gibwaabaso vai s/he is trapped the smoke, blocked by the smoke

gibwaakizo vai s/he is blocked by fire

gibwaakwaa vii it is blocked with trees, is overgrown with trees

gibwaam nid your thigh (back of thigh)

gichi- pv lex very, quite; big; great

See also: chi- pv lex

gichi-agosimaan na a pumpkin

gichi-ajina adv tmp in a very short while, in a very little while

gichi-anama'e-giizhigad vii it is Christmas

gichi-anishinaabe na an elder; a mature person

(verb of being) gichi-anishinaabewi vai s/he is a mature person, is an elder
(derived noun) gichi-anishinaabewiwin ni senior citizen status; elderhood
gichi-anishinaabewi vai s/he is a mature person, is an elder

gichi-anishinaabewiwin ni elderhood; senior citizen status

gichi-aniibiish ni a cabbage

gichi-apiitendaagozi vai s/he is highly respected, is valuable, is important

Paired with: gichi-apiitendaagwad vii

gichi-apiitendaagwad vii it is highly respected, is valuable, is important

Paired with: gichi-apiitendaagozi vai

gichi-aya'aa na an adult, an elder

(verb of being) gichi-aya'aawi vai s/he is of a mature age, is an adult, is an elder
gichi-aya'aawi vai s/he is of a mature age, is an adult, is an elder

gichi-aya'aawinaagozi vai s/he looks like an old person

gichi-aya'aawiwin ni advanced maturity: adulthood, elderhood

gichi-badaka'igan ni a roasting fork

gichi-baapi vai s/he laughs out loud, has a big laugh

gichi-besho adv loc very close, a short distance

gichi-bine na [RL] a turkey

[
wild turkey
; 
Meleagris gallopavo
]

gichi-biima'igan ni [BL] a wrench

gichi-desinaagan ni a platter

gichi-dibaakonigewinini na a judge (especially one of a higher court)

gichi-doodooshaabo ni [BL] cheese

gichi-emikwaan ni a ladle

gichi-emikwaanens ni [BL] a tablespoon

gichi-enigok adv deg really hard, with great force or effort

gichi-gibaakwa'odiiwigamig ni a penitentiary, a state or federal prison

gichi-gigizheb adv tmp early in the morning

gichi-gikinoo'amaagewikwe na a school superintendent (female)

gichi-gikinoo'amaagewinini n a school superintendent (male)

gichi-gizhizo vai s/he has pneumonia

gichi-gizhizowin ni pneumonia

gichi-giishkiboojigan ni a two-man cross-cut saw

gichi-izhiwebad vii it is stormy

gichi-jiimaan ni a ship; a big boat or canoe

gichi-manidoo na great spirit, god, the creator

gichi-manidoo-giizis na January

gichi-miikana ni a highway

gichi-mookomaan ni a large knife: a butcher knife, a machete, a sword, a saber

gichi-mookomaan na
  1. a white person
  2. an American

See also: gichimookomaan na

gichi-mookomaan-aki ni United States

gichi-mookomaan-ikwe na an American woman

gichi-mookomaanikwe na a white woman

(verb of being) gichi-mookomaanikwewi vai s/he is a white woman
gichi-mookomaanikwewi vai s/he is a white woman

gichi-mookomaanimo vai s/he speaks English

gichi-mookomaaniwi vai s/he is a white man; s/he is a white person,

gichi-nemaab na [RL] a bowling ball

gichi-niibowa adv qnt a whole lot, very much

gichi-noodin vii it is very windy, is stormy

gichi-noosooki-desabiwin ni [BL] a chestfield; a couch

See also: noosooki-desabiwin ni [BL]

gichi-odaabaan na [BL] a bus

gichi-ogimaa na the highest leader: a head chief, a head boss, a president, a king

(verb of being) gichi-ogimaawi vai s/he is the highest leader: a head boss, a president, a king
gichi-ogimaakwe na the highest female leader: a head chief, a head boss, a president, a queen

(verb of being) gichi-ogimaakwewi vai she is the the highest leader: a head boss, a president, a queen; she is the wife of the highest leader
gichi-ogimaakwewi vai she is the the highest leader: a head boss, a president, a queen; she is the wife of the highest leader

gichi-ogimaawi vai s/he is the highest leader: a head boss, a president, a king

gichi-ogin na a tomato

gichi-oginii-naboob ni tomato soup

gichi-onaagan ni a large dish or shallow pan: a basin, a dish pan

gichi-oodena ni a city

gichi-waazakonenjiganaaboo ni gas, gasoline

gichi-wiikaa adv tmp for a very long while

gichi-ziibi ni
  1. a big river
  2. Gichi-ziibi: the Mississippi River

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

gichigamiiwashk ni a reed, a rush

gichigamiiwaabo ni [BL] ocean water; water of a great lake

gichigaad ni a right leg

gichimookomaan na
  1. a white person
  2. an American

See also: gichi-mookomaan na

gichinik ni a right hand

gichitwaawibii'igan ni sacred writing, scripture

gichiwadaawangishin vai s/he, it (animate) is stuck in the sand

gichiwam vta hold h/ back with teeth

gichiwaabikishin vai s/he is stuck on a rock, drives the boat onto rock

gichiwaagonesin vii it is stuck in the snow

Paired with: gichiwaagoneshin vai

gichiwaagoneshin vai s/he is stuck in the snow

gichiwaakwa'an vti pin it down, clamp it down

(derived noun) gichiwaakwa'igan ni [BL] something that pins or clamps things down: a peg, a clamp, a clothespin, a safety ring on a trap
gichiwaakwa'igan ni [BL] something that pins or clamps things down: a peg, a clamp, a clothespin, a safety ring on a trap

gichiwaakwaji vai s/he, it (animate) gets snagged, gets caught up on something stick-like

gichiwibiisaanishi vai s/he is stranded because of the rain

gichiwijiishkiwesin vii it is stuck in the mud

Paired with: gichiwijiishkiweshin vai

gichiwijiishkiweshin vai s/he, it (animate) is stuck in the mud

Paired with: gichiwijiishkiwesin vii

gichiwim vta talk h/ out of going

gichiwin vta hold h/ back; keep h/ from going

Paired with: gichiwinan vti

gichiwinan vti hold it back, keep it from going

Paired with: gichiwin vta

gichiwisin vii it is stuck

gichiwishkaa vii it gets stuck

Paired with: gichiwishkaa vai

gichiwishkaa vai sh/e, it (animate) gets stuck

Paired with: gichiwishkaa vii

gichizid ni right foot

gid= pf you [the one or ones spoken to; the second person]; your [the one or ones spoken to; the second person]

gidagagwadaashi na a crappie

[
black crappie
; 
Pomoxis nigromaculatus
]

gidaganaga'e vai s/he (a fish) has variegated scales, has scales of several colors

gidaganagekozi vai s/he (a tree) has spotted bark

gidaganashkidii vai s/he (a bird) has a spotted 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.