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How to use the Ojibwe People's Dictionary

makadewitigwaane vai [BL] s/he has black hair

makadewitoon vti2 make it black

Paired with: makadewi' vta

makadewizi vai s/he is black, is dark

Paired with: makadewaa vii

makadewizigwaa vii there is dark ice

makadewiingwe vai s/he has a dark face, a black face

makadewiiyaas na a Black person; a person of African descent

makadewiiyaasikwe na a Black woman; a woman of African descent

makadeyaanakwad vii it is a dark cloud

See also: makadewaanakwad vii

makak ni a semi-rigid or rigid container: a basket (especially one of birch bark), a box

(verb of making) makakoke vai s/he makes a basket (especially one of brich bark), makes a box (verb of possession) omakakomi vai s/he has a basket or baskets, has a box or boxes
makakoke vai s/he makes a basket (especially one of brich bark), makes a box

makakosag ni a large rigid containter: a tub. a barrel, a carton

makakosagodaabaan ni [BL] a boxcar

makakoshkwemag ni [BL] a bark basket

makakoons ni a small box-like object: a small box or basket, a battery, a small radio

makam vta take (it) from h/ (forcibly), rob h/ of (it)

(reciprocal) makandiwag vai they take (it) from each other (forcibly), rob each other (of it)
makandiwag vai they take (it) from each other (forcibly), rob each other (of it)

makandwe vai s/he takes things from people (forcibly), robs people

makizin ni
  1. a shoe, a moccasin
  2. a tire

(verb of making) makizinike vai s/he makes moccasins, makes shoes (benefactive) makizinikaw vta make moccasins for h/ (verb of possession) omakizini vai s/he has moccasins or shoes
makizinataadiwag vai they play the moccasin game with each other

makizinataadiwin ni moccasin game

makizinataage vai s/he plays the moccasin game

(derived noun) makizinataagewin ni moccasin game
makizinataage-nagamon ni a moccasin game song

makizinataagewin ni moccasin game

makizineyaab ni a shoelace

makizinikaw vta make moccasins for h/

makizinikaan ni a moccasin in manufacture

makizinike vai s/he makes moccasins, makes shoes

mako-bimide ni bear grease

mako-miikana ni a bear path

mako-wiinin ni bear fat

mako-wiiyaas ni bear meat

mako-zaasiganag na bear cracklings

makobwaam ni a bear hindquarter

makoganzh na a bear claw

makokaazo vai s/he pretends to be a bear

makominagaawanzh na a mountain ash

[
American mountain ash
; 
Sorbus americana
]

makoninj ni a bear paw

makoshtigwaan ni a bear's head

makowi vai
  1. s/he is a bear, becomes a bear
  2. she comes of age, has her first menses

makozid ni a bear's foot, hindpaw

makoons na a bear cub

(verb of being) makoonsiwi vai
  1. s/he is a bear cub
  2. she comes of age, has her first menses
makoonsens na a baby bear cub

makoonsiwi vai
  1. s/he is a bear cub
  2. she comes of age, has her first menses

makwa na a bear

[
black bear
; 
Ursus americana
]

(verb of pretending) makokaazo vai s/he pretends to be a bear (verb of being) makowi vai
  1. s/he is a bear, becomes a bear
  2. she comes of age, has her first menses
makwanii'igan ni a bear trap

makwasaagim na [ML] a bear paw snowshoe

makwasaam na [BL] a bearpaw snowshoe

makwayaan na a bear hide

makwaazh ni a bear den

mamadwebiigamitoo vai s/he makes noise in the water

mamadwe'ige vai s/he keeps on pounding audibly

mamadwetoo vai s/he makes noise moving around out of sight

mamadweyaashkaa vii it (waves) can be heard

mamadwezige vai s/he is heard firing repeatedly

mamagoniishkwe vai s/he has the mumps

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
mamakii'idim vai there is an allotment of land

mamakii'idiwag vai they are allotted land

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

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 s/he is sewn with designs, is embroidered

Paired with: mamazinigwaade vii

mamaachaawan vii they are big

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

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

mamaajigaadeni vai s/he moves h/ legs

mamaajinikeni vai s/he moves h/ arms

mamaajininjiini vai s/he moves h/ hands or fingers

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

mamaajise vii it moves

mamaajizideni vai s/he moves h/ feet

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

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

mamaandidowag vai they are big

mamaangadepon vii it snows in large flakes

mamaangadezide vai s/he has a wide foot or wide feet

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

mamaanganowe vai s/he has big cheeks

mamaangaabide vai s/he has big teeth

mamaangaashkaa vii there are big waves

mamaangibagaa vii there are big leaves

mamaangibagizi vai s/he (tree) has big leaves

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

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.