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How to use the Ojibwe People's Dictionary

car wash
n
car wash
giziibiigidaabaanewigamig ni a car wash

carcass
n
carcass
zhiigozhigan ni a carcass

beaver carcass scrap
amiko-zhiigozhigan ni a beaver carcass scrap

card
n
playing card
ataadiwin na a playing card

cut cards
bakwenige vai s/he cuts cards

deal cards
onin vta
  1. form, shape, assemble, order h/
  2. deal h/ (e.g., cards)

Paired with: oninan vti

oninige vai
  1. s/he forms, shapes, assembles, orders things
  2. s/he shuffles and deals cards

play cards
ataw vta
  1. put (it) in a certain place for h/
  2. gamble with, play cards with, bet with, wager with h/

ataage vai s/he gambles, plays cards, bets, wagers

ataadiwag vai they gamble, bet, wager with each other; they play cards

danataadiwag vai they bet with each other in a certain place; they play cards in a certain place

● CARD SUITES
club suite card
danens na a club suite card

diamond suite card
gaanoo na a diamond suite card

heart suite card
giiwoon na a heart suite card

See also: giiyoon na

giiyoon na a heart suite card

See also: giiwoon na

spade suite card
biig na a spade suite card

● NAMES OF CARDS
ace
bezhigoobii'igan na an ace

deuce
niizhoobii'igan na a deuce, a two (card)

three card
nisoobii'igan na a three (card)

four
niiyoobii'igan na a four (card)

See also: niiwoobii'igan na

niiwoobii'igan na a four (card)

See also: niiyoobii'igan na

five
naanoobii'igan na a five (card)

nine
zhaangasoobii'igan na a nine (card)

ten
midaasoobii'igan na a ten (card)

jack
zhimaaganish na
  1. a soldier
  2. a jack (card)

queen
ikwe na
  1. a woman, a lady
  2. a queen (card)

king
ogimaa na
  1. a leader (male): a boss, a chief, a king
  2. a king (card)

cardboard box
n
cardboard box
mazina'igani-makak ni a cardboard box

cardinal
n
cardinal
misko-bineshiinh na a cardinal

[
northern cardinal
; 
Cardinalis cardinalis
]

care
vi
care for
bamendan vti care for it

Paired with: bamenim vta

bamenim vta care for h/

Paired with: bamendan vti

care
n
take care
bami'iwe vai s/he takes care of people, is a care-giver

bamitoon vti2 take care of, protect, keep it

Paired with: bami' vta

ganawendan vti take care of, protect, keep it

Paired with: ganawenim vta

ganawenim vta take care of, protect, keep an eye on, keep h/

Paired with: ganawendan vti

ganawenjige vai s/he takes care of, protects, keeps things

ganawendamaw vta take care of, protect, keep (it) for h/

ganawenindiwag vai they take care of each other

ganawenindizo vai s/he takes care of h/ self, is self-reliant

ganawenjigaade vii it is taken care of, protected, kept (by someone), "they" take care of, protect, keep it

ganawenjigaazo vai s/he is taken care of, protected, kept (by someone), "they" take care of, protect, keep h/

ganawendaagwad vii it is taken care of, protected, kept

Paired with: ganawendaagozi vai

ganawendaagozi vai s/he is taken care of, protected, kept; s/he is on parole

Paired with: ganawendaagwad vii

carefree
adj
carefree
naangide'e vai s/he is carefree

careful
adj
careful
ayaangwaamizi vai s/he is careful, is cautious

carefully
adv
carefully
weweni adv man properly, correctly, carefully

wawiinge adv man carefully; completely; properly; well

See also: owiinge adv deg [NI]

watch carefully
naanaagadawaabam vta watch h/ carefully, observe h/

Paired with: naanaagadawaabandan vti

naanaagadawaabandan vti watch it carefully, observe it

Paired with: naanaagadawaabam vta

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.