Search the dictionary Advanced Search

How to use the Ojibwe People's Dictionary

I
pron
● FIRST PERSON SINGULAR PRONOUNS
I
niin pron per I, me

See also: gaye niin pron per ; geniin pron per

niineta pron per only I, only me; just me

niinitam pron per my turn, me next

● FIRST PERSON PREFIX FORMS
I
ni= pf I, me [the one or ones speaking, the first person]; my [the one or ones speaking, the first person]

in= pf I, me [the one or ones speaking, the first person]; my [the one or ones speaking, the first person]

n= pf I, me [the one or ones speaking, the first person]; my [the one or ones speaking, the first person]

nind= pf I, me [the one or ones speaking, the first person]; my [the one or ones speaking, the first person]

ind= pf I, me [the one or ones speaking, the first person]; my [the one or ones speaking, the first person]

nd= pf I, me [the one or ones speaking, the first person]; my [the one or ones speaking, the first person]

nim= pf I, me [the one or ones speaking, the first person]; my [the one or ones speaking, the first person]

im= pf [first person prefix before b-]; my [the one or ones speaking, the first person]

m= pf I, me [the one or ones speaking, the first person]; my [the one or ones speaking, the first person]

ice
n
  • The basic noun for the substance "ice" is mikwam.
  • Verbs describing types or conditions of ice may contain the medial /-ikw-/ or the medial classifier for slab- or cake-like things /-zigw-/. 
  • Verbs of travel on the ice may contain the complex VAI final /-aadagaako/ or the VAI final /-aako/. These verbs are shown below under the heading TRAVELING ON THE ICE.
ice
mikwam na ice

bare ice
michizigwaa vii there is bare ice

crack in the ice
daashkikwadin vii there is a crack in the ice

fall through the ice
dwaashin vai s/he falls through the ice; s/he or it (animate) goes through the ice

Paired with: dwaasin vii

hole in ice
bagonezigwaa vii there is a (natural) hole in the ice

bagozigwa'ige vai s/he makes a hole in the ice

dwaa'ige vai s/he makes a hole in the ice

hole in the ice for water
dwaa'ibaan ni a hole made in the ice for water

dwaa'ibii vai s/he makes a water hole in the ice

ice clears off
baakibii'an vii ice clears off the lake

ice moves making noise
madwezigoshkaa vii ice moves making noise

much ice
mikwamiikaa vii
  1. there (a lot of) ice
  2. it hails

on top of the ice
agidiskwam adv loc on top of the ice

slip and fall on ice
ozhaashikoshin vai s/he slips and falls on the ice

slippery ice
ozhaashikwaa vii there is slippery ice

ozhaashizigwaa vii there is slippery ice

soft ice
nookizigwaa vii there is soft ice

spear fish through the ice
akwa'waa vai [ML] s/he fishes through the ice with spear

under the ice
anaamikwam adv loc under the ice

anaamiskwam adv loc under the ice

anaamizigwam adv loc under the ice

● TRAVELING ON THE ICE
arrive on the ice
bagamaadagaako vai s/he arrives on the ice

come from a certain place on the ice
ondaadagaako vai s/he comes on the ice from a certain place

ondaadagaakobatoo vai s/he runs on the ice from a certain place

come on the ice
biidaadagaako vai s/he lands coming off the ice

biidaadagaakobatoo vai s/he runs here on the ice

biidweweyaadagaako vai s/he is heard coming here on the ice

go about on the ice
babaamaadagaako vai s/he goes about on the ice

babaamaadagaakobatoo vai s/he runs about on the ice, around on the ice

go across on the ice
aazhawaadagaako vai s/he goes across on the ice

go along on the ice
bimaadagaako vai s/he goes along on the ice

bimaadagaakobatoo vai s/he runs along on the ice

go ashore on the ice
agwaayaadagaako vai s/he goes ashore on ice

go away on the ice
animaadagaako vai s/he goes away (in the other direction) on the ice

animaadagaakobatoo vai s/he runs away (in the other direction) on the ice

go out from shore on the ice
niminaaweyaadagaako vai s/he goes out from shore on the ice

go to a certain place on the ice
inaadagaako vai s/he goes to a certain place on the ice

run across on the ice
aazhawaadagaakobatoo vai s/he runs across on the ice

start off on the ice
maadaadagaako vai s/he starts off on the ice

maajiiyaadagaako vai s/he starts off on the ice

ice box
n
ice box
mikwamii-makak ni an ice box, a refrigerator

ice chisel
n
ice chisel
eshkan ni an ice chisel

ice cream
n
ice cream
dekaag ni-v ice cream

ice cutter
n
ice cutter
mikwamiiwinini na an ice cutter

identify
vt
identify
aawendan vti identify it

Paired with: aawenim vta

aawenim vta identify h/

identify by sight
aawenan vti identify it (by sight)

aawenaw vta identify h/ (by sight)

identify by sound
aawetan vti identify it (by sound)

Paired with: aawetaw vta

aawetaw vta identify h/ (by sound)

if
conj
if
giishpin adv gram if

as if
indigo adv man as if; just like, seems like

ignite
vi
ignite
biskane vii it catches fire, ignites

ignorant
adj
ignorant
bagwanawizi vai s/he is ignorant, is stupid, is dumb

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.

  • Audio recordings
  • Images
  • Video
  • Documents

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.