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How to use the Ojibwe People's Dictionary

mamadweshkaa vii it makes noise (in motion), creaks repeatedly

mamadwetoo vai s/he is heard moving or doing something repeatedly or here and there

mamadweyaashkaa vii it (waves) can be heard

mamadwezige vai s/he is heard firing repeatedly

mamagoniishkwe vai s/he has the mumps

mamagozo vai it is bumpy, is bubbling as it cooks

mamakadewiganzhii vai s/he has black nails or claws

mamakadewishkiinzhigwe vai

mamakadewitawage vai s/he has black ears

mamakadewizide vai s/he has black feet or paws

mamakizi vai s/he has smallpox

(derived noun) mamakiziwin ni smallpox
mamakiziwin ni smallpox

mamakii' vta allot h/ land

(reciprocal) mamakii'idiwag vai they are allotted land (reciprocal) mamakii'idim vai there is an allotment of land
mamakii'idim vai there is an allotment of land

mamakii'idiwag vai they are allotted land

mamanitewan vii

mamaw vta take (it) from, pick it up from h/

mamawadisidiwag vai they visit each other back and forth

mamawadishiwe vai s/he visits back and forth

mamawin vta

mamayaawii vai s/he starts moving around and getting up

mamazinaada'e vai s/he is figure-skating

mamazinaande vii it has a multicolored design, has a colorful pattern

mamazinigwaade vii it is sewn with designs, is embroidered

Paired with: mamazinigwaazo vai

mamazinigwaazo vai it (animate) is sewn with designs, is embroidered

Paired with: mamazinigwaade vii

mamaachaawan vii they are big

mamaadaandagaasin vii the boughs move in the wind

mamaadin vta manipulate h/, move h/ back and forth

Paired with: mamaadinan vti

mamaadinan vti manipulate it, move it back and forth

Paired with: mamaadin vta

mamaadwe vai s/he groans

mamaajibide vii it shakes (in operation)

Paired with: mamaajibizo vai

mamaajibidoon vti2 pull or push it and start it moving

mamaajibizo vai s/he shakes (in operation, driving)

Paired with: mamaajibide vii

mamaajide'eshkaa vai s/he has heart palpitations, has a heart attack

mamaajigaabawi vai s/he moves around standing

mamaajigaaden vta move h/ legs

mamaajigaadeni vai s/he moves h/ (own) legs

mamaajinikeni vai s/he moves h/ arms

mamaajininjiibani'o vai

mamaajininjiini vai s/he moves h/ hands or fingers

mamaajise vii it moves

mamaajise vai s/he moves, is in motion, twitches

mamaajiwebishkan vti shake it up, make it shake (forcefully using the body or foot)

Paired with: mamaajiwebishkaw vta

mamaajiwebishkaw vta shake it (animate) up, make it (animate) shake (forcefully using the body or foot)

Paired with: mamaajiwebishkan vti

mamaajii vai s/he moves, is in motion, twitches

mamaajiimagad vii it moves

mamaanabi vai s/he keeps sitting uncomfortably

mamaanaabide vai s/he has crooked teeth

mamaandaagochige vai s/he performs tricks

(derived noun) mamaandaagochigewin ni a circus, a carnival
mamaandaagochigewin ni a circus, a carnival

mamaandaawaajimo vai s/he tells an amazing story of wonders

mamaandaawichigewinini na a magician

mamaandaawizi vai perform wonders; s/he performs wonders; s/he does magic

mamaandidowag vai they are big

mamaangadepon vii it snows in large flakes

mamaangadeyaawan vii they (inanimate) are wide

Paired with: mamaangadeziwag vai

mamaangadeyiigizide vai s/he has wide and flat or webbed feet

mamaangadezide vai s/he has wide feet

mamaangadeziwag vai they (animate) are wide

Paired with: mamaangadeyaawan vii

mamaangadikwanezi vai s/he (a tree) has big branches

mamaanganowe vai s/he has big cheeks

mamaangaabide vai s/he has big teeth

mamaangaadigose vii the riffles/ruffles of the current are big

mamaangaashkaa vii there are big waves

mamaangibagaa vii there are big leaves; it has big leaves

Paired with: mamaangibagizi vai

mamaangibagizi vai it (animate) has big leaves

Paired with: mamaangibagaa vii

mamaangibiisaa vii there are big drops of rain

mamaangibwaame vai s/he has big thighs

mamaangidenigome vai s/he has big nostrils

mamaangiganzhii vai s/he has big nails, has big claws

mamaangigaade vai s/he has big legs

mamaangigidigwe vai s/he has big knees

mamaangikawe vai s/he leaves big footprints or tracks

mamaangiminagadoon vii they (something globular) are big

mamaanginike vai s/he has big arms

mamaangininjii vai s/he has big hands

mamaangipon vii there are big snowflakes

mamaangishkam vai2 s/he leaves big tracks

mamaangishkiinzhigwe vai s/he has big eyes

mamaangitawage vai s/he has big ears

mamaangiwine vai s/he has big horns or antlers

mamaangizide vai s/he has big feet

mamaangizidekawe vai s/he leaves wide-footed tracks

mamaangizhigwane vai it has big tail fins

mamaangwewebiisaan vii [BL] the sound of big rain drops is heard

mamaanjigogaadepizh vta restrain h/ by tying h/ arms

mamaanjigogaadepizo vai s/he is restrained by h/ legs being tied

mamaanjigogaamo vai s/he is so fat s/he can't move

mamaanjigon vta hold h/ so h/ can't move, restrain h/

Paired with: mamaanjigonan vti

mamaanjigonan vti hold it so it can't move, restrain it

Paired with: mamaanjigon vta

mamaanjigonikepizh vta restrain h/ by tying h/ arms

mamaanjigonikepizo vai s/he is restrained by h/ feet being tied

mamaanjigoshkaa vai s/he is immobilized, freezes in h/ tracks

mamaanjigozi vai s/he is immobilized, is incapacitated

mamaanjigozidepizh vta restrain h/ by tying h/ feet

mamaanjigozidepizo vai s/he is restrained by h/ feet being tied

mamaanjigwabi vai s/he sits unable to move, sits cramped up

mamaanjigwapide vii it is restrained by being tied; it is bound securely

Paired with: mamaanjigwapizo vai

mamaanjigwapidoon vti2 bind it securely; restrain it by tying it

Paired with: mamaanjigwapizh vta

(verb of undergoing) mamaanjigwapijigaazo vai s/he is bound securely (by someone), "they" bind h/ securely; s/he is restrained by being tied (by someone), "they" restrain h/ by tying h/
mamaanjigwapijigaazo vai s/he is bound securely (by someone), "they" bind h/ securely; s/he is restrained by being tied (by someone), "they" restrain h/ by tying h/

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.